Taunting Repartee
by Christa4ever
Summary: Shortly after Operation Rebirth Magneto leaves a note for Rogue asking her to met with him. Two days later she is outside of a little café. 'Well here goes everything.' she thinks as she walks into what might be the most important conversation of her life
1. Chapter 1

This fic takes place sometime after 'Operation Rebirth' but before 'Hex Factor'. The story centers around Rogue and Magneto. I taking a few liberties with Magneto's powers. In the comics it's rumored that he has some telepathic abilities. For this story I'm assuming that true. I hope you enjoy it. Please Review! ^.^

Rogue walked into the little book café unsure why she'd decided to come. She read the note he had left on her bed the other night, and now here she was.

_'I must be going out of my mind.'_ she thought to herself. Rogue walked past the front area and into the back room. Just as the letter had instructed. Once there she noticed how isolated it was from the rest of the café.

'_Course he wants to get you alone. Can't exactly talk about mutant affairs in front everyone.'_ There was a couch and a small coffee table. The walls were lined with bookshelves. Rogue put her bag on the couch and headed over to one of the bookshelves.

_'A lot of classics,_' she thought as she pulled out one of her favorites. His letter said that he would meet her at 4:30pm. She had gotten to the café faster than she had thought. It was only 4:07pm. She had plenty of time to read. Rogue sat down on the couch and opened the book. She wondered why he choose to meet here.

"I enjoy the atmosphere." Rogue looked up quickly from the book to see Magneto smiling down at her. "And how are you, my dear?" he asked as he took off the long trench coat he had been wearing. Underneath he was wearing a white button down shirt, and black slacks. Her eyes lingered over his hands for a moment when she saw he was wearing black gloves.

"I'm fine. How are you?" Rogue asked as she closed the book, and put it down on the table.'_ This is weird,_' she thought as she put her bag on the floor. Giving him more room to sit.

"I couldn't be better." he said with a smile as he put his jacket over the side of the couch. He then sat down much closer to her then she had expected. Surprised, she moved a few inches away from him. She didn't want to be too close to him. She didn't want him in her head. He smirked at her.

"If memory serves, Rogue, I am already in your head." Her eyes narrowed in anger.

"Stop using your mediocre telepathy on me." she yelled. He laughed. It was a dark laugh that made Rogue's stomach do a back flip.

"Mediocre you say," he said with a smile "and what is mediocre about my telepathic powers, Rogue?" he asked keeping eye contact with her.

"You can only read people's thoughts. You can't go into their minds or even send them a message." She wasn't quite sure why she answering his questions. It was information that he was well aware of. She guessed he was trying to see just how much she knew about him. "You're no match for the professor," she continued. "You can't go near him without your bucket." He chuckled at her choice of words. They Stared each other in the eyes.

"What else can I do?"

"You can project your mind out of your body."

"Yes, I can." They sat there in silence for a few moments, neither taking their eyes off of the other. Finally, Magneto spoke.

"I'm sure you realize the beauty of our situation. We have never had a conversation. Not one word has passed between us. Yet, because of your powers you know _everything_ about me, Anna Marie." She gasped when he used her real name.

"How do you-" He cut her off.

"And because of my sources I now know _everything_ about _you_." Her eyes widened.

_'Why would he-'_

"After our last encounter in the desert. I was curious as to how Charles had found me, and why he would send only Wolverine and two children to fight me. Mr. Wagner's presence was obvious: as a means to enter my fortress. But you, my dear, were at first a mystery. It didn't take long to realize that it was _only_ because of _your_ abilities that Charles was able to find me at all."

"Why follow up on it? Why do you care?"

"Do I need to have a reason?" he asked as he leaned back against the couch. making himself more comfortable.

"No, I guess not, but you do have one. You always have a reason." He smiled

"And, why is that, Anna?

"If you didn't have a reason, something to gain from doing it, then you wouldn't be doing it. There wouldn't be a point for you." His smile only grew. "So, why are you here? Why talk to me?"

"You already know the answer to your question, Rogue. You have more than enough of me in that head of yours to understand what I want." He shifted another inch closer to her. "The question that I am curious to find the answer to is why are _you_ here?" She retreated another inch back to match his advance.

"In the note you said you would be able to help me with my powers. I'm here to see what you know about them. I'm here for your help." He moved another inch towards her. She retreated again only to realize her back had hit the edge of the couch. "STOP THAT." she said with fear in her voice. Fear that did not go unnoticed by the Master of Magnetism.

"Afraid, Rogue?"

"NO," she insisted. He stared at her intensely. She felt as though his eyes could burn straight through her. "Yes," she admitted softly. He progressed even closed.

"Answer your own question, girl. Why would I find out everything about you?"

"You don't like people having advantages over you," she answered. He laughed.

"No, no I do not," he replied, amused by her comment. He made eye contact with her yet again. "What is the _other_ reason?"

"To find out how you can get what you want from me?"

"And what do I _want_ from you?" he said as he closed the small space that had been between them.

"You want me to join you, by any means necessary." He grabbed her arms, and pulled her towards him.

"What does that mean, Anna? What will I do to you?" He said as he slide his right hand slowly up her arm, neck and onto to her cheek. She gasped.

"You find out what I want. My greatest desire and you give it to me." He pulled her onto his lap. His hands on her sides. Running them up and down her body. She places her hands on his chest. Her breathing was heavy.

"And if that does not work?" He asked as he shifted right hand onto the back of her neck, and brought her face closer to his. He progressed until they were almost touching.

"Then you find my greatest weakness and you" Her lips brushed against his slightly as she talked. It took effort to speak. "You use it against me."

"For you, Anna Marie, they are one in the same." He kissed her then, softly. She waited for the pull of her powers to start, but they never did. She wished she could say she was surprised, but she wasn't.

He broke the kiss, and took her hand in his. Magneto observed her as he took off her glove. She watched him in awe as he brought her hand to his mouth and kissed it. She moaned. He smirked.

"Such an exquisite sound from one simple touch." He took her other hand in his and removed her glove. He then took off both of his gloves. His drifted to her stomach, and worked there way down to the hem of her green shirt of sheer. He pulled the material upwards until it reached her arms. He continued to remove the shirt, she resisted. Rogue put her hands firmly on his chest.

Thousands of thoughts raced through her mind as she stopped his advances. The one that rang out the loudest was _'I need to get off of him.'_

"You'll do not such thing, Anna Marie." She glanced up at him again.

"I thought I told you to stop doing that." she yelled. His hands were still holding the shirt up near her arms. His left hand brushed against her breast. She gasped.

"You did. I choose not to listen."

"I should go." She started to move off of his lap. His hands traveled to her waist.

"You are _not_ going _anywhere_." He pulled her back down onto his lap. Her eyes narrowed.

"So? What now, Magneto? You're going to keep me here against my will?" He smirked.

"Be honest with yourself, Rogue." His hands resumed their movements up and down her body. This time underneath her shirt on her bare skin. Up and down. He leaned his face towards hers. "Do you really _want_ to leave?" he kissed her again. This one was more demanding. He nipped her bottom lip as he pulled away. "Well? I asked you a question, girl." His right hand slid to her cheek. "Do you want to leave?"

"Yes," she said. _'No,' _she thought. He chuckled.

"You seem to be having a disagreement with yourself. Which is it, Rogue? Do you mean what you say, or are your thoughts where you true desires lie?" She pulled away from him. This time he let her. She stumbled away a few feet knocking into the coffee table.

"Get out of my mind," she ordered.

"You first, my dear," he said calmly.

"I not _in_ your mind," she shouted. "Your minds in mine. I can't get rid of it. They don't go away. _None_ of them do. I have everyone I've ever touched in me," she yelled down at him. She found it strange being taller than him.

"Do you want them to go away? The voices, the memories?" he said with a level voice that she currently lacked.

"I..." She paced in front of him. "Yes.....Course I want them gone. They aren't my memories. I hate knowing everything about everyone. I don't want to know about you. I don't want to remember what it was like in the camps. I don't want to relive the plain crash Scott was in. I don't want to remember Kurt getting bullied, having to hide all the time. I don't want memories of happy families I was never a part of. That hurts too much. I don't want to know everything about a person when in real life they won't give me the time of day. I.......I........"

Her mind all over the place. She was thinking about the pros and cons of having all these people in her head. As though she had a choice. Magneto hadn't said anything about being able to get rid of the voices, but he would. He wouldn't have brought it up if he couldn't do anything about it.

"No," she continued. "Not all of them. I like knowing some things. I can tell what kind of mood someone's in in an instant. That's been useful. Scott's good at Math. Jean, at everything else. I can speak German if I really have to. A couple of other languages because of you, and Storm. I know how people think. I know what they're going to do: sometimes before they do. I want to have what's useful. But not the pain. I don't want other people's pain. I got enough of my own. I.." She screamed in frustration. "I don't know what I want," she finished.

"I think you do." He stood up. She glanced up at him. "Sit down. I'll be back in a moment." He started to walk to the door.

"Where are you going?" she demanded to know.

"I'm thirsty." He turned his attention back to her. "Do you want anything?" he asked calmly. She didn't know what it was about his demeanor but it was wearing off on her. The more calm he was, the more she was able to calm down. Maybe he knew that.

"Ice water," she said as she sat back on the couch. He nodded, and left the room. She leaned back, making herself more comfortable. Her thoughts were still running a mile a minute, but she was starting to calm down. Her breath was finally back to a normal pace, her heart rate was slowing down as well. She had been on edge the moment he had entered the room. Now that he was gone, if only for a few minutes, she could collect herself.

She ran her hand through her hair and realized it was a mess. She ran her fingers through a few more times hoping to make it look somewhat presentable. If her hair was that messed up she could only guess how little of her make up was still on. She reached over to her bag to pull out the make up, and mirror she had with her. Her hand came out empty. _'Where the hell it is?'_ She thought as she started to pull out books, pencils, pens. She pull them on the couch as she continued to search. She pulled out her communicator. She was about to put it on her couch with her other things when she noticed that it was switched off. _'I didn't do that.'_ She turned it back on.

"ROGUE." A panicked voice ed out. "Rogue, are you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. Professor, what's wrong?"

"Where are you? Where has Magneto taken you?"

"I'm at the caf-" The communicator was ripped out of her hands and lifted into the air. She watched as the communicator was twisted beyond repair. "What you do that for?" She gazed up to see Magneto standing in the door way with two glasses in hand.

"I don't wish to be disrupted by Charles, of all people." He walked over to couch.

"You turned off my com-link." she accused as she stood up.

"For the same reason."

'_How long has the Professor been trying to get in touch with me?'_ How many people were worrying about her right now? He held out the glass of water to her. She imagined taking it only to throw it in his face.

"Don't you dare," he said warningly. She took the glass from him and put it on the table.

"Why doesn't the Professor know where we are? You ain't wearing your bucket."

"Consider this room one very large bucket," he said, with a smirk, using her choice of words. He sat down on the couch, and took a sip of his drink. "Why were you searching for your communicator?" He put his glass on the table.

"I wasn't," she said with anger. She sat down on the couch. "I was trying to finding my make up." She grabbed her bag and put her books back in it. "My face must look horrible right now." She put her bag back on the floor.

"I beg to differ." His hand was back on her cheek. He turned her face to make her look at him.

"You are far more attractive without all that paint on." Her cheeks turned red.

"We're back to this now?" she asked softy. Her anger slipping away as she felt his skin against hers. He leaned in, brushing his lips against hers.

"Indeed." He closed the very small gap that was between their lips. She leaned into him as she kissed back. His other hand went around waist pulling her closer to him. She wrapped her arms around his neck, enjoying the texture of his hair. His hand left her cheek and transfered down her body. He broke the kiss. She started to protest until he started to kiss to neck. She gasped in delight at the new sensations.

_'Rogue, are you alright? Where are you? Where has Magneto taken you?' _

"I can't," she yelled in anguish. She didn't want to stop. She was enjoying herself, enjoying him, but felt that she had no choice. She broke away from his hold. She moved to sit a few inches away from him, as she caught her breath. "Not when the Professor's all worried about me." She looked up up at him. "I got to get back," she insisted.

"As I said before, you are not going anywhere." He leaned back against the couch.

"I _really _want to leave." She stared him in the eye. _'I really do want to leave. I have to go now.'_

"We are not done speaking yet."

"You didn't want to _speak _a minute ago." He smirked. She rolled her eyes. "The X-Men are looking for me. My _family_ is looking for me. I got to go let them know I'm okay. They think you _kidnapped_ me. Right _now_ you are holding me _captive_."

"If you go back-"

"IF?" she shrieked. '_Arrogant, son of a-' _

"_If," _he said loudly drawing her out of her thoughts._" _You go back, what will you tell them? Just how many _details_of todays _activities_ are you willing to share?" he said as he put his hand on her knee, rubbing slightly.

"What's that have to do with anything? There are things they don't want me to know."

"Yet you do."

"Not about everyone," she insisted.

"You know enough," he assured. "How much do your teammates, your _family, _know about you?" Her eyes narrowed in anger. She didn't answer him. "Do they even know your name?"

"It's Rogue."

"Your legal name is Anna Marie Creed. Does Wolverine know you were raised by his nemesis?"

"If you can call it being raised. I lived with Victor and Raven for only six years. Then I was sent to Irene's when they got divorced."

"Six years is a long time for someone your age. Nearly half your life." She leaned back against the couch, her arms folded over her chest.

"Do you _have_ a point or are we just going to sit here and rehash my life?" Her eyes lingered over his hand that was still on her thigh. Magneto noticed this, and rubbed a bit more than he had been a moment ago. She blushed, and turned away from him. "You're back to trying to seduce me, now?" she murmured. His hand slide up her leg, and under her shirt. He pulled her by the waist towards him, and made eye contact.

"I never stopped."

"I _need_ to go" she pleaded as she placed her hands on his chest again. His hands were under her shirt touching ever bit of skin available. "You're just going to keep switching between _tactics _until I'm willing to join, aren't you?"

"But you are willing to join me, Rogue," he said as his hand ran up her neck. "You would not have come here today if the thought had not crossed your mind." He kissed her neck. Softy at first, but they grew in intensity. "You know me, my girl," he said between kisses. "You knew what I wanted from you the moment you saw the note. You had two days to make up your mind whether you would join me or not-"

"I haven't made up my mind yet," she yelled pulling back from him slightly. He smirked.

"So, you haven't decided if you will stay with the X-Men?" He pulled her close to him again, and continued to bite and nibble on her neck.

"No....Yes...I'm not!" she insisted.

"Oh, but you are. You just admitted it."

"I DID NOT......I" She pushed him off of her. "I'm right. You're just going to keep pushing and pushing until I say yes. You don't care how long it takes. It's just going to be me and you in this room till I say yes. Till I give in." He leaned back against the other side couch. Giving her a little space. Now was the time to talk.

"Why did you come here?"

"I've already told you," she screamed.

"No, you gave the reason you _think_ you're doing this. I want the _real_ reason. Why did you come here?"

"I wanted to hear what you had to say about my powers."

"Why did you come here?"

"I'm here for your help."

"Have I given you the impression I would be willing to help you for free? You knew I would want something in return. Why did you come here?"

"What? You want me to say I came here to join you?"

"Yes, I want you to admit the truth."

"The truth. You want the truth. You can't handle the truth." She stared at him for a few seconds before she fell over laughing.

"And what precisely is so amusing?" She reached over to the table and grabbed the glass of water Magneto had gotten for himself. She took a sip, a few deep breaths, and calmed herself.

"You've never seen 'A Few Good Men', have you?"

"I can not say that I have."

"You should watch it if you have the time, it's a good movie." Much of the tension Rogue had felt had been washed away from her much needed laughter. Her mind was clear: her thoughts on the present. She took another sip of water before returning the glass to the table. "You're not going to let me leave, are you?"

"No."

"Then, can I at least call the Professor? Tell him I'm okay? I won't tell him where we are, or anything. Just not to worry about me." He chuckled.

"Well it's clear your haven't absorbed Charles."

"Why?"

"You've been in my custody for nearly two hours, Rogue. I'll wager that no one has seen you since school ended at two. That was over three hours ago. If no one within the X-Men remembers seeing you for most of day, Charles could easily assume that I've had you for five, eight, maybe ten hours. You have my memories, girl. You know what means I have used to secure support before. Will Charles believe a word you say over the phone?"

"No," she said quietly

"It will just make him worry all the more."

"I'm not saying yes to you." she declared. "Not anytime today."

"Perhaps tomorrow then."

"How long do you plan on keeping me here?"

"As long as it takes."

"How long are you going to stay here?"

"I thought it might be necessary, but I hadn't seriously considered leaving you here alone. That was what you were implying?"

"Yeah." She looked away from him. _'I should've never come here. What was I thinking?' _

"I don't know. What thoughts were crossing your mind on the bus ride here?" She looked him in the eye.

"You followed me here." She ran over her first few memories of the café in her mind. "That's why you came in right after I got here, and not at four-thirty."

"Correct."

"Why?"

"Why not?"

"Mind control's _not_ your power, right?" He laughed.

"No, it's not."

"No offense, Eric, but I don't exactly believe you," Her eyes widened as she realized she had called him by his first name. "I..-"

"It's quite alright, Anna. If I can address you by your first name, you can address me by mine," he said with a smile. She smiled back.

"I'm not saying yes. You're not letting me go. So, what do we do now?"

"We talk until one of us changes the other's mind."

"Oh," she said softy.

"Rogue, _if_ mind control was my power, why would I bother with conversation?"

_'Cause it's more of a challenge.' _He smiled.

"That would be one reason I would consider it."

"You're enjoying this, a lot, aren't you?" His eyes roamed over her body. "I don't mean_ that_. I talking about the conversation we've been have this whole time. You want to _convince_ me to join you. You _were _at the school early today, weren't you? This morning I told myself I wasn't going to come, but by sixth period I had changed my mind. That was because of you, wasn't it?"

"And if it was?" he questioned.

"It would mean I didn't come here on my own. It would mean you made me."

"What would that change?"

_'If he did make me come here, it would mean I ain't a fool, and he could end this at any time. Just make me want to join him.' _Rogue started to replay all of the memories she had of Magneto using his powers. There were quite a lot of them, from several points of view. Magnetism was, of course, used the most. He used astral protection to talk to the Professor sometimes. His ability to read minds was used in conversations. It was why he was so good at getting people on his side. He knew what they wanted to hear. But he never used more advanced telepathy. To his knowledge he could learn from another telepath how to advance his powers, but he didn't trust any one of them enough to give them excess to his mind.

"It would make you more dangerous. You're good _enough_ at manipulating people _without_direct control over their minds. It would call into question a lot of decisions people in Bayville have made. It would explain why no one realized there are over a dozen mutants living here. "

"Charles' telepathy can account for that, my dear." She thought about that for a moment. She stared him in the eye.

"Except Principal Kelly." He smiled.

"What a delightful imagination you have, Anna."

"It's not _that_far of a stretch. You were there that night. You kept the cameras from going live. You could've, after the professor had passed out, finished the job for him. You wanted to keep the world from finding out about us too." She sighed. "Even if you can control minds, you're not going to admit, right?"

"Perhaps." She sighed loudly as she leaned back against the couch.

"When you found out everything about me, did that include foods I like?" He laughed as he stood up.

"Yes, it did, and I'm famished myself. I'll return in a few minutes."

"I'd offer to help, but you ain't going to let me leave this room." He chucked. "The Professor might find me if you did." He smiled down at her.

"And what makes you think that?" he asked.

"You said 'consider this room one very large bucket'. Not this building." Magneto walked over to Rogue, he leaned down and kissed her forehead.

"You have a remarkable gift, Rogue." He sat down next to her.

"That was _my_ memory from earlier, nothing to do with my powers."

"Your mutation does not end with your skin. Your mind is very much a part of it. You think differently then most. If knowledge is indeed power, then you are the most powerful among us."

"A telepath can do the same things I can."

"Oh, I beg to differ. Telepaths can look through other people's thoughts, you can live them as though they were your own."

"It ain't exactly a blessing."

"But it is the most impressive power I've come across to date."

"I thought you were going to get food?"

"You kept talking." he said with a smile. "And as you pointed out before, I am enjoying the conversation." Her stomach growled. They both glimpsed down at it.

"I'll be quiet, now." He took her chin in his hand, and turned her face towards him. He kissed her softly.

"I will only be a few minutes." Magneto stood up. He left the room, closing the door behind him. She waited until she couldn't hear his footstep before she got off of the couch.

_'Now, to find a way out of here.'_ She walked over to the door, she found that it was locked. _'It was worth a try.'_She walked over to one of the book shelfs, and glazed over the many titles. One that held her attention was entitled 'Open Sesame.' Rogue rolled her eyes, at the thought that had passed through her head.

'_Yeah, cause Magneto's the type to have an exit hidden behind a book shelf._ _The whole room is made of metal. All he has to do is THINK if he needs another way out.'_ She sighed, and pulled on the book, anyway. When she did the book shelf parallel to it swung inwards, revealing a hidden exist. _'NO, FUCKING WAY,' _she thought. She walked over to the new doorway. There was no light, but she could barely make out a stairway going down. _'Why would he have this here?'_ She heard footsteps. _'FUCK.'_ Rogue ran back to the book and pushed it back into place. The book shelf followed suit. She sat back down on the couch. _'Okay. Okay, girl. Just DON"T think about. Don't look over at that book. You have no way out. All you can do is talk to him. Try to talk him into letting you go home. That's all you can do right now.' _

_' I thought it might be necessary, but I hadn't seriously considered leaving you here alone.'_ She replayed his words in her mind.

_'That could work, but STOP thinking about it.' _The door opened. Magneto walked in with a tray full of food. He placed it on the table and sat in the couch next to her. She forced her gaze onto the food. A smile quickly spread across her face. She took the bowl off the tray and tried some.

"Hmm." She glanced up at. "This is really good." She eat another spoon full. "Where'd you find gumbo this good in New York?"

"I made it." She paused.

"Why go through all the trouble? Not that I'm complaining or anything." She continued to eat. "I haven't had gumbo this good since I lived with Irene."

"I knew I would be feeding you. I thought it might as well be something you enjoy."

"Thanks."

"Your welcome."

Neither spoke a word until they were done eating. Her thoughts were filled with nothing else besides the food. She was taking in every detail, the taste, smell, texture. Magneto was silent because he was listening in on every one of her thoughts. Just as he had been since he had first walked into the room. Rogue put the bowl back on the tray, and leaned back against the couch.

"That was _so_ good," she stated.

"I gathered, from the _other _thirty times you've thought that."

"Well it was. You're a really good cook." She sighed "Listen, if you don't _like_ what I'm thinking then stay out of my head. At least you _get_ a choice." He stared her in the eyes. "What?" He continued to stared at her. '_What's going on, Eric?'_ He turned away from her and picked up the tray.

"Nothing." He walked towards the door.

"Did something change?" she asked alarmed. He looked to her, and saw the flash of concern on her face.

"No, no of course not." he assured her. "I return in a few minutes, and will continue talking. Just as before." She let out a breath in relief.

"Good." She paused. "I mean _not _good. I mean. Hell I don't know." She let her body hit the back of the couch hard. He laughed softy.

"That will be the first thing we discuss when I return." he said with a smile, as he walked out the door, which he closed and locked behind him. She waited for his footsteps to fade, again. As soon as they did she quickly got up and pulled on the book. She put her gloves back on, picked up her bag, and took another book off of the shelf. Once inside the doorway she threw the book she had taken at the book 'Open Sesame'. She hit it dead on. She smiled as the door way closed behind her. She pulled out a small flashlight she had on her key chain, and turned it on.

_'And I told Kurt I'd never need it.'_ she thought with a smile as she was running down the stairs. She would have to remember to hug the blue elf when she got home. She found that the stair case led to long hallway. She continued to run till she found herself at a door. She tried to open it. 'FUCK.' She surveyed the hallway, hoping to find an exit she might have missed before. There was none. She turned back to the one and only exist. _'It's made of metal, there's no way I can force it open. Now what?'_ Her question was answered for her as the entire hallway lit up. 'FUCK, I am so FUCKED.' Rogue took a deep breath, and turned around to face him. '_What?'_ she thought in confusion. He wasn't there. The doorway behind her opened. It led up to another stair-case. She decided to question what was going on later. _After_ she was home. She ran up the stairs and out the door. She found that she was outside the café. The back end of the building. She continued to run. _'PROFESSOR'_ she shouted in her mind.

No answer. She wasn't really expecting one. After all, she was several miles from the institute. She continued to call to anyway. She glanced over her shoulder as she running. Magneto wasn't there. He wasn't coming after her.

_'What the hell is going on? PROFESSOR' _

_'Rogue, where are you?'_ She glimpsed up at one of street sign as she passed it.

_'Clarkson and Fifth, but I ain't staying put. I'm running towards the institute.' _

_'Are you being followed?'_ She looked over her shoulder, again. Still no Magneto.

_'I think he let me go.'_

_'What?' _

_'I DON'T KNOW.'_

_'Alright, alright, Rogue. Where are you now?'_

_'Clarkson, and third.' _

_'Wait there.' _She stopped running, which she wasn't to happy about. It seemed that he let her go. But she didn't know for sure. If it wasn't true then she didn't want to give him a chance to catch up with her. Thankfully, the Professor and Storm pulled up. She got in the car.

"Rogue, are you alright child?" Storm asked. Her voice filled with concern.

"Yeah, I'm fine."

"Rogue, what happened?" The Professor asked.

"Can we talk about it tomorrow?"

_'If you go back, what will you tell them? Just how many details of todays activities are you __willing to share?' _

"Look, tomorrow, how about you go over the memory in my head? You'll understand what happened perfectly, and it'd be easier than me trying to explain." He nodded.

"Tomorrow then."

_'Yeah, tomorrow.' _she thought with a sigh.

I hoped you enjoyed it. Please review. I don't care what you have to say. You can tell me I should stop writtting, or that you thought it was awesome. I just want to know how many people toopk the time read it. Oh, and I'm trying to improve as a writter so any and all input you may have on this would be apprecated. Thanks again for reading. Hope to hear from you.


	2. Chapter 2

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Two

Rogue was awoken by the annoying sound of her alarm clock. She turned over in bed with a sigh as she pressed the snooze button. She glanced at the time. It was 6:00am.

_'Why am I up so early?' s_he thought. She heard the Professor's voice ring in her head.

_'X-Men, please report to the danger room in fifteen minutes.'_ It caused her to wake up fully.

_'Oh, yeah,'_ she thought as she got up. _'That's why.'_

An hour later Rogue and the rest of the X-Men where standing in the danger room, their exercise complete. Professor Xavier and Logan were in the monitor room above, giving their critiques.

"Spike, how about next time you _aim_ for the guns,and _not_ the monitor room?" Logan suggested.

"I was." Evan screamed out in protest.

"Huh?" Logan looked at the three bones lodged in the window in front of him. "Well, that needs work," he said under his breath.

"Well done all of you." Professor Xavier said. "Now, I suggest you all get ready. None of you wish to be late for school."

"Yes Professor." Scott said.

"Oh, and Rogue, come to office right after school." The Professor added.

"Okay," she said with a nod. They walked into the elevator.

"Rogue, like, why do you need to talk to the Professor?" Kitty asked.

"Is everything alright?" Kurt asked.

"It's about something that happened yesterday. I really _don't_ wanna talk about it." Kitty took the hint and left her alone. Kurt, however, pressed the matter further.

"Are you okay? What happened?" he asked alarmed as they stepped out of the elevator and walked towards their rooms.

"I'm fine," she assured him, trying to keep her annoyance out of her voice. She was going to have to answer enough of the Professor's questions after school. She didn't want to go over it a million times. She sighed. _'There are just some things I don't want everyone to know,'_ she thought.

_"We're back to this now?" she asked softy. Her anger slipping away as she felt his skin against hers. He leaned in, brushing his lips against hers._

_"Indeed." He closed the very small gap that was between their lips. She leaned into him as she kissed back. His other hand went around waist pulling her closer to him. She wrapped her arms around his neck, enjoying the texture of his hair. His hand left her cheek and transfered down her body. He broke the kiss. She started to protest until he started to kiss to neck. She gasped in delight at the new sensations._

She pushed the image out of her mind. Now was not the time to relive _that_ memory. She watched Kurt walk down the hall. She could see the look of concern had not left his face.

"Really, Kurt, I'm fine. I'll tell you about it later. Just not today." Kurt twisted his neck to look at her.

"Okay," he said with a smile as he walked away. Rogue sighed as she walked into her room. The danger room session left her tired, as usual. She changed out of her uniform and into her civilian clothes.

"Rogue?" Kitty asked. "What happened to your neck? If I didn't know better I would, like, think you had hickeys." she said with a giggle.

_'He didn't'_ she thought as she ran over to the mirror. _'He wouldn't dare.' _she screamed in her mind_._ She looked at her neck and sure enough their were several black and blues. '_He did!'_ She quickly pulled out her makeup and started to apply cover up to her neck. '_How did I not see these yesterday?_' she asked herself as she rushed to cover up the marks.

_"You are far more attractive without all that paint on." _She replayed his words in her mind.

_'Then don't give me a reason to put more on ass-hole.'_ she yelled in her head. She looked at herself in the mirror, realizing she had to put more make up on her face. It was to match the, now, paler color of her neck.

"Rogue, come on we're going to be late for school." Kitty said in an attempt to hurry her. She looked herself over once more before she was sure that no one would be able to see the bruises on her neck.

'_'Now, I just have to go to school, come home, and face the Professor. Yeah, today is gonna be great.'_ she thought sarcastically as she picked up her bag and followed Kitty out of the room.

Several hours later, Rogued raced out of the school building clearly annoyed. Why Miss Ginos had chosen today to discuss her report was beyond her.

_'It ain't due for another two weeks,_' she thought as she rolled her eyes. Rogue marched to the spot that Scott had parked in. _'You have got to be kidding me.'_ It was gone. _'They left me here!'_ she screamed in her head. _'I can't believe they left me here.' _She heard a car pull up behind her. _'Good, I just want to go home,'_

"Hello, Anna." She whipped around.

"Eric?" she yelped in surprise. There he was sitting in the drivers seat of a new Lexus. Watching her through the open passenger's side window. "What are you doing here?" she asked.

"I wished to speak with you. We can drive somewhere and have another one of our conversations," he said with a grin. "I sure you have questions." The car door opened. "Join me?"

"Right?" she laughed. "Because, I'm going to get into that large metal cage with _you_." He chuckled, as the door closed. She watched as he parked the car, and got out.

"Would you be willing to have a conversation on a park bench? In public, clearly within view of countless strangers?" He pointed to a bench a few feet away from them. She eyed the bench with uncertainty.

"I should go inside, and call Scott."

"Perhaps, but do you want to?" They stood in silence.

'_Yes.......no. I could go over there," _she considered. '_Screw that._' she thought in anger. _'I ain't playing by his rules.'_

"Why did you let me go?" she asked determined to get her answer there and then. A grin spread across his face.

"Come, sit with me, and I will be more than willing to enlighten you." He strolled over to the bench and sat down.

_'God damn it,' _she yelled in frustration._ 'I can leave this time,' s_he assured herself._ 'Anytime I want. He can't keep me here.' _She glanced over to the bench. Magneto stared back at her from his seat, waiting for her to accompany him. _'I should go call Scott.' _she reasoned._ 'But, I want to talk to him. I want an answer,' _she thought determined._ S_he took a deep breath. '_Five minutes then I call Scott.' _The compromise seemed like a good one. It made sense in her mind. _'What can happen in five minutes?'_ She looked over to could see the smirk on his face. '_Stop reading my mind, old man,' _she thought as she reluctantly walked over. She put her bag on the floor.

"No," he answered dryly. She huffed as she sat down as far away from him as possible.

"So, why did you let me go?" He turned to look at her.

"You never contemplated the possibly that you might have successfully escaped on your own?" he asked. She sighed.

"No. The lights turned on, the door opened by itself. _I_ didn't do that."

"You assumed I must have?"

"Yeah." She glanced up at him. "If you're just gonna keep asking me questions I'm gonna leave. I came over here cause you said you were gonna answer _mine_."

"Yesterday, at the standstill, you asked me what we were going to do. What answer did I give you?" Rogue stood up, and started to walk away. She felt a hand on her arm. She turned to face Magneto as she tried to put her arm out of his grasp. His grip only tightened.

"Let go of me," she demanded.

"No." Her eyes narrowed in anger. "Yesterday, when you asked me what we were going to do. What answer did I give you?" he repeated. She didn't reply. "_This_ answer is relevant to _your_ question, my dear."

"'We talk until one of us changes the other's mind,'" she quoted. Her eyes widened. "I changed _your_ mind?" she asked in disbelief.

"Correct."

"How?" He released her arm, and sat back down.

"Have a seat, Rogue."

_'You always have to have control over the situation, don't you?'_ He only smiled. '_Why am I putting up with this?' _she thought in anger as she sat down next to him. He turned to face her again.

"Because I interest you." Their made eyes contact. "Just as much as you interest me," he said as his bare hand gently stroked her cheek. She blushed.

"I'm gonna go, now," she said softly. His other hand found hers. He took off her glove. Their fingers intertwined. He flashed her a knowing smile.

"You have to stand in order to leave, Anna."

"I know," she said breathlessly.

"Do you want to leave?" She weakly shook her head no. "Whatever could be the reason?" He looked down at their hands. He rubbed his thumb against the back of her hand. She sucked in a breath. "You don't want this feeling to end?" He gazed into the eyes again. "Do you?"

"No," she said quietly as she stared into his eyes. Unable to look anywhere else.

"It does not have to. You, and I can enjoy countless moments just like this one."

"That would mean joining you?"

"Yes."

"I can't betray them." The conflict she was feeling was clearly showing on her face.

"Can't?" he asked with an eyebrow raised.

"I _can't_ betray them," she strongly insisted.

"You can't betray your family? _This_ is the same family who couldn't remember that you were in need of a ride home?" She broke away from him. Her lust momentary being over powered by anger. Anger which was not directed at him. At least not all of it. She stood up, folded her arms against her chest, and turned her back to him. "_This_ is the _same family_ who _left_ you here because you weren't outside the _moment_ the last bell rung?" He stood behind her, his hands on her shoulders. "They take you presences for granted, Rogue. Why else would none of them notice you were not in the car? They assume you have no where else to go. They could not be more mistaken."

"They don't think that. They don't take me for granted," she argued.

"They do, and you are fully aware of this fact." he persisted inflamed. "Self-induced ignorance does not become you, Rogue. You are far more insightful than you allow them to see. _I _fully comprehend what you are capable of. Do _they_?" he asked as his grip on her shoulders tightened. She winced in pain. Both from his hold, and his words. "Does Cyclops know that you have nightmares of a plane crash you were never present at? Does Strom comprehend that you understand her many fears? Is Nightcrawler aware that he is your _brother_? Has _any_ member of your _family_ taking the time and effort to fathom who you are?" His grip tightened once more. She gasped in pain.

"First you leave bruises on my neck. Now my shoulders?" she accused infuriated. He freed her arms. She took a step away from him, as she rubbed the soreness out of her shoulders.

"Well?" She turned to face him.

"Do you always have to be this intense?" she yelled. "This confrontational?"

"Must you always avoid painful questions?" he screamed as he stood a step towards her.

"You're the one who _avoids_ questions. Would it kill you to answer just _one_ of mine?"she yelled up at him.

"Perhaps." he said as he took another step forward closing the gap between them.

"Perhaps?" she yelled.

"Yes." She screamed in frustration.

"You make me so _angry_," she informed him as she hit his chest.

"I can assure you, the felling is mutual."

"Why can't you just-" She was interrupted by his lips violently crashing onto hers. His arm was around her waist pulling her up against him other hand was on her cheek, holding her face close to his. Her hands went to his chest. His tongue demanded entire into her mouth. She allowed it. They stayed like that for a few minutes until he broke the kiss. They were both gasping for air. She clung onto his shirt as she was catching her breath. His hand went to her chin. He tilted her head up to look at him.

"Join me, Rogue, and you will _never_feel loneliness again." Silent tears ran down her face. He wiped them away gently.

"I can't." she screamed as she twisted her face slightly to gaze at the people walking past them. "Why is no one looking at us?" she asked panicked.

"That word, again," he referred to her first statement, ignoring the second. "Implying you have no will of your own." He turned her head roughly to face him. "You have a _choice_," he persisted "Or am I not the only one in Bayville who uses his telepathy?" He asked with a raised eyebrow, answering her question.

_'The professor would never do that to me. To any of us,'_ she though as she pushed against his chest. His hold around her waist keep her from moving.

"Are you so sure?"

"Yes! Now, let go of me, Eric." She attempted to escape his hold.

"Not until you give me an answer." He pilled her against him once more.

"I already did."

"No, you gave me an invalid excuse. You believe you are free to leave the Xavier Institute at any time. You know what I have to offer. It is far more than a bed, and a rigorousness training schedule. Will you join me?" She took a deep breath.

"No." He released her. She walked several feet away from him.

"Here you stand, Anna Marie, with unwavering loyalty. I offer you everything you could ever want. Everything you could ever need, and say 'no' to me each and every time. Why? Because you are faithful to the_ them_. What have t_he X-Men_ done for you to _earn_ such _devotion_?" In the distances she could see Scott's car driving in their direction.

"For started, they came to get me," she said with a grimace.

"How charming,"he said condescendingly, "you're content with being a second thought." Her eyes narrowed in anger.

"Go to hell." she said as she went to picked up her bag. She refused to look at him.

"I'm not the one you should be anger with, Anna." They watched as Scott, Kitty, and Kurt drove up to where they were standing. "They are." The door opened.

"Rogue!" Kitty rushed out of the car. "We are, like, so sorry."

"Yeah, we didn't mean to leave without you, we swear." Kurt added.

"Magneto?" Scott questioned in confusion. Both Kitty and Kurt drew their attention away from Rogue, to look at Magneto. Scott's hand flew to his glasses. The rims radiated red in a wordless threat.

"Mr. Summer, Ms. Pride, Mr. Wanger, please, do not be alarmed. I mean you no harm."

"I doubt that." Scott said with malice."Magneto, what are you doing here?" He demanded to know.

"I simply came to speak with Rogue. Surly you can not be against conversation, Mr. Summers," Magneto said.

"Rogue, are you alright?" Kitty asked.

"I'm fine. Let's just go home." she replied as she made her way towards the car.

"What do you want with Rogue?" Scott questioned.

"That is between Rogue and I. If you're honestly so _intrigued_ I suggest you ask her." Scott turned to address her.

"Rogue?" Scott asked. She sighed.

"He wants me to join him." she said as she put her bag in the car.

"What?" Both Kitty and Kurt screamed at the same time.

"My answer's no. So, it doesn't mater. Let's just go home."

"But." Kurt said quietly. She motioned for the three of them to get into the car. Kitty and Kurt reluctantly got in. Scott stayed standing, ready to fight.

"We'll speak again soon, Rogue, I'm sure." Magneto said with a grin as he casually strolled towards his car.

"Rogue? Why are you wearing only one glove?" Kurt asked. She looked down at her hand.

"Eric, wait!" she screamed.

"Eric?" Scott repeated with a raised eyebrow. She ignored him and casted her attention to Magneto.

_'One problem at a time,_' she thought to herself. Magneto stopped and stared at her.

"My glove?" She waved her bare hand at him. Magneto chuckled as he pulled it out of his pocket. He held it out to her from where he was standing. A knowing smirk on his face. She rolled her eyes as she walked over to where he was. She snacked the glove out of his hand.

"Of of curiosity, my dear," he asked in a slightly hushed voice. "How many of my memories have you looked through?"

"Most of them. Why?" she asked as she put her glove back on.

"Does Charles understand the full extent of your powers?" She glanced up at him.

"What ever happened to you answering_ my_ questions?"

"Today's agenda was altered as needed." She huffed.

"You never were going to, were you?" he smiled down at her.

"No, not today. Not unless you said yes." She sighed."Does Charles-"

"I heard you the _first_ time you asked." she said annoyed. "_I_ don't understand the full extent of my powers."

"A shame. You're capable of so much more than you think."

"Rogue?" She heard Scott call out from behind her.

"I have to go, now." She turned to go.

"But, you wish to continue?" She looked at him again.

"I _like_ talking to you. You know, when you're _not_ trying to hold me against _my will_." He laughed. She smiled. "You're interesting. There's a lot I could learn from you." He nodded.

"About nine years ago I brought a house only a few towns from here." She searched his memories.

"In Jericho?"

"Yes," he said with a smile. "You know the phone number?" She nodded. "Good. If you wish to speak that is where I will be staying. You are welcome there anytime."

"Thanks."

"Your welcome. I look forward to continuing this conversation."

_'So, do I. From several miles away, over the phone, where I'm in no danger,'_ she thought. She could hear him chuckling behind her as she walked to the car.

"Rogue, what's going on?" Scott asked they both got into the front seats of his car. Scott started the car, and took off in the direction of the institute.

"The short version. Eric asked-"

"And, when did you start calling Magneto by his first name?" Scott asked.

"Yesterday, I called him Eric by accident. He said it was fine."

"Yesterday?" Scott asked.

"If you would stop asking me questions for five second I could explain." she yelled annoyed. The three of them went silent. "Like I was saying, Eric asked me to met him yesterday, to talk. I went, we spoke, and then I wanted to leave. At first he wouldn't let me, than something changed his mind. I was _suppose_ to go over the memory with the Professor right after school, but ya all _left_ me there."

"We are really sorry about that, Rogue." Kurt said.

"We don't even know how it happened. I, like, could have sworn you were in the car with us." A light turned on in Rogue's head.

"You thought I was in the car?"

"Yeah." Kurt said.

"When did you notice I wasn't here?" Rogue asked.

"About half way home." Scott said.

_'About seven or eight miles. I gotta remember that.'_ Rogue thought to herself.

"It was like one minute you were in the back sitting next to me, and then you were gone." Kitty said. With her suspicions confirmed Rogue let out a sigh of relief. They hadn't forgotten her after all. "I know that sounds crazy-"

"Not to me, Kitty." she said with a smile. "Don't worry about it. It's not your fault."

"But we-" Kurt started.

"Thought I was in the car," Rogue finished, "and the second ya all realized I wasn't you turned 'round to get me."

"We didn't turn around the exact second." Kurt said with guilt in his voice. Rogue raised an eyebrow.

"The Professor called on the communicator. He told us to keep driving." Scott explained.

"We told him you weren't with us, but" Kitty said

"But he said he knew, and that you had to keep driving anyway. Until you were closer to the institute. At least ten miles from the school." Rogue guessed.

"Fifteen, but yeah that's what happen."Scott said as he pulled into the garage.

"When you got past fifteen miles, the Professor told you to pull over." Rogue said. They got out of the car.

"We were sitting there for over ten minutes, doing nothing." Kurt said.

"It wasn't for nothing, Kurt. The Professor was pulling up mental blocks in your minds." Rogue said.

"Why?" Scott asked as they walked into the institute.

"Magneto," Rogue said with a sigh as she walked ahead of them.

"What?" Kitty asked gasped.

"How?" Kurt asked panicked.

"Magneto isn't telepathic." Scott said. Rogue spun around.

"Actually, he is." Her comment was met with a round of gasps. "He can read minds as easily as Jean can. I think he can do more, but I don't know for sure."

"That's, like, so not good." Kitty said.

"Nope, that's about as bad as it gets. I gotta go talk to the Professor about this. Now, I have _two_ conversations to go over. This is gonna take twice as long as I thought. I see ya all at dinner if we're done by then." Kitty nodded as she Kurt and Scott walked towards their rooms. Rogue watched them go before heading to the Professor's office. She walked up to his office, and brought her hand up to the door. Just as she was about to knock the Professor said.

"Rogue, please come in." She rolled her eyes as she opened the door.

So, yeah. That's where I'm ending it this time. I'm already writing the next chapter. So, it shouldn't take me to long to update. Please Review!

Speaking of which.......

Elfeleroux: Thanks for reading, and reviewing. ^.^

SevenZseveNTYA: You were right about the title. I spelled it wrong. Thanks for pointing that out. As you can see I fixed it. I going to try not to but, if I do keep making stupid mistakes like that, feel free to point them out. Anyway, thank you for reading, and for the lovely review. I hope you enjoyed this chapter.

Eris R. Lebeau: Hi! I love finding people who love Rogue/Magneto together. Yeah, my story isn't totally canon, but I'm going to try to develop my plot around episodes. Or within episodes at opportune moments. I might make a few small changes to serve my plot, but nothing too big. You know, aside from Magneto trying to talk Rogue into joining him every chance he gets. ^.^ Thank you for reading, reviewing, and adding this fic to your story alert. I hope you like this chapter. I look forward to hearing from you again.

Rose of Demise: Thank you for reading and putting this fic onto your favorite stories list!


	3. Chapter 3

Hello, everyone. While writing this chapter I noticed that I couldn't enunciate words within thoughts because I do_ this _to enunciate and think. That started to annoy me. So now I'm gonna do **this **instead. If anyone is angered or disturbed by this change for some reason, feel free to review. I'll consider your suggestions, and decide what I'm doing for the next chapter. Anyway, that's all I have to say for now. On with the story!!!

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Three

Professor Xavier lowered his hands from Rogue's face, and rolled over to the window to gaze out into the night sky.

"Professor? Are you okay?" Rogue asked with concern. "You only looked at what happened in the café."

"I don't need to witness the rest. Correct me if I'm wrong, but you'd rather I didn't see it," he accused not looking at her.

"Just the **physical** parts, but I understand if you have to," she said.

"It is not necessary. I trust you."

"Thanks, Professor," she said with a smile.

"You should go eat. We've both missed dinner." She stood up to leave.

"You're not coming?" she asked.

"No. I need to think for a while." She nodded as she made her way to the door. She stopped. There was something she wanted to know.

"Did you know he was telepathic?"

"No," he said bitterly.

"But you knew he could astral project?"

"YES!" he screamed. She tensed. That was the first time he had ever raised his voice to her. He calmed himself. "I apologize, Rogue. Please excuse me."

"You're angry at **him**, right? For hiding his powers from you?"

"Yes, of couse." She let out a sigh of relief.

"Do you want anything to eat? I could bring it here."

"No," he said quickly. "Thank you," he said slower.

"Can we talk tomorrow?" she asked.

"Yes, **tomorrow**," he said, his voice slightly elevated.

"See you tomorrow. Sorry, Professor," she said as she rushed out of the room.

"You have nothing to apologize for, Rogue," he said as the door closed. His words unheard. "I am the one who should be apologizing."

Rogue walked into the kitchen and made her way over to the refrigerator. She checked inside and found a plate covered in tinfoil. She smiled as she carried the plate over to the microwave. The dish had a post it note labeled 'Rogue's do not eat.' It was in Kitty's handwriting. She gently removed the note, and put it in her pocket. She then ripped the tinfoil off, and crumbled it up into a little ball. She aimed for the trash can, and threw. She frowned when it hit the floor.

"Drop something?" Scott asked as he walked into the room.

"Just seeing if I could save myself a few feet of walking." she said as she put the plate in the microwave and set it for two minutes. Scott picked up the ball and put it in the trash can.

"How that?" She smiled.

"Thanks, Scott." He smiled back.

"How it go with the Professor?" he enquired. She stared at him for a few moments and saw the look of concern on his face.

"Just came from his office, huh?"

"Yeah, he-"

"Doesn't want to talk to anybody," she finished.

"Why?" he asked.

"He's upset about Magneto. He didn't know he was telepathic." she answered before he had a chance to ask why again. "The Professor and him used to be friends. **Really** good friends," she explained. "It hurts to learn that someone you cared about, someone you trusted with your life, never felt the same way about you." The timer on the microwave went off. She turned to take out her food. Scott walked up next to her with a fork in his hand. "Thanks," she said with a smile. She sat down at the table and started to eat her dinner. Scott sat across from her.

"I've never seen him like this. I'm worried," he said.

"He'll be okay. He just needs time to heal," she said in between bites. He sighed.

"I hope you're right. Just.....How could Magneto hide something like that from the Professor? He wasn't wearing that helmet all the time was he?" She used chewing to stall as she quickly glanced over a few conversations the Professor and Magneto had in the past.

"No," she said. "They used to met in public or at Eric's house to talk. They met at a hospital **before **Eric had made it. He didn't wear the bucket the whole time, he couldn't."

"Then, how?" Scott asked.

"Well, part of it is..," she said in between bites. "I think...... The Professor doesn't go into other people's minds without their permission. Eric never gave him his permission."

"The Professor never looked?" She consulted the piece of Magneto's mind she had in her head as she continued eating.

'_If you want to know look through the memories for your-self,' _Eric told her.

"Rogue?" Scott asked.

"One minute Scott," she said as she took another bite. _'I have no time right now, Eric. I can only chew for so long. Just answer the question,' _she demanded.

'_Very well. To my knowledge he never has, but this is Charles we're referring to. If he did read my thoughts without my permission the __**last**__ thing he would do is tell me about it.'_

'_Could he?'_ she asked as she took ine last bite.

'_Earlier in our relationship, yes, but he never did. By the time Charles realized he should have a look I had taken the proper precautions.' _

'_Thanks,'_ she thought.

_'You have nothing to thank me for, my dear. This is __**your**__ mind, after all,'_ he replied. She sighed, as she mentally pushed Magneto to the back of mind with the others. He went willingly.

"No, not once, Scott," she said as she stood up and went over to the sink. She took off her right glove so she wouldn't get it wet. "It's gonna be okay," she tried to assure him as she rinsed off the plate and fork. "The Professor's strong. He's survived a lot worse. We all have," she said as she put them both in the dishwasher.

"I know but..."

"But nothing," she said as she sat back down opposite him. "The Professor is a **big boy**. Besides, he's more worried about protecting **us**_,_ than himself."

"What do you mean?"

"He doesn't like putting us in danger,"

"But, we fight all the time."

"Yeah, the **Brotherhood**. How injured can we get fighting **those** boys? And the rest of it is in the danger room. A highly controlled situation with an **off switch**. Magneto's the most serious threat we've gone up against. Look, the Professor and I are gonna talk tomorrow and, we're gonna keep talking about painful issues. Magneto was able to get ya all to leave me at the school. Thankfully, it only so he could talk to me some more. But, what if he made us leave someone behind in the future, when we're at his base? We need to be able to defend against him. So, yeah, the Professor's not gonna be the best mood for the next few days. Maybe the next few weeks. But, we have keep talking about it. We have no choice," she sighed. "I know you have questions, Scott. Probably a lot more after listening to me, but he needs tonight to clear his head. So, wait till tomorrow, okay?"

"Until you're done speaking to him?" he asked with a raised eyebrow.

"If you don't mind. Something tells me as more of us find out about this the line gonna get longer and longer. Can you keep this between us for now?"

"Rogue, I don't **like** keeping secrets."

"You think I do?"

"Well, yeah a little. I mean, your real name-"

"Anna Marie Creed," she said interrupting him.

"Yeah..." he stopped surprised that she had told him. Rogue smiled up at him.

"Do you realize that's the **first time** you've ever asked me about it? I know ya all wonder, but none of you have ever said anything to me. I'm just not the kind of person to start talking about myself out of nowhere. I need an opening or something."

"Rogue I..," he started to say with regret clearly showing on his face.

"I know I come off as the type that would bite your head off for a wrong comment. So, I get why no one's asked, but now **you** are. Go ahead. Ask any question you want. I'll answer it."

"I...you can ask me questions too. We can really get to know one another." he stopped. "Not that we don't know each other now. Just... we can find out about each others lives **before** we moved to Bayville."

'_DAMMIT.'_ She sighed. _'Relax girl, you know this would come up eventually. Just tell him **slowly**, and he shouldn't get too upset about it,'_ she thought. "Scott, you know that when I absorb someone I get more than just their power, right?" she asked.

"Yeah." he said confused. "I know how your powers work," he assured her.

'_Apparently not.'_ she thought in annoyance. "When I absorb someone I get that person's memories and feelings. I get everything that makes that person who they are up to the moment I absorb them. It's like I have a copy of them in me head that doesn't go away. When I absorb a person again it's like getting an update. The fragments merge together, and I know even more. I try not to look, but the person's memories are like my memories. They** feel** like they're my memories. Sometimes they sneak up on me, in nightmares. When I wake up I have to remind myself that whatever I dreamed about never happened to me, no matter how real it felt." she said as the memory of Scott's plane crash replayed in her mind. She pushed the memory away as fast as she could. She looked up at him. "I've absorbed you twice, Scott. I don't need to ask you questions about your past. I already know it." She turned her gaze away from his. "Sorry."

"Rogue, you have nothing to be sorry about."

"I.....Really?"she asked surprised.

"Of course, you can't help how your powers work. You've never gotten mad at me for wearing sunglasses."

"Course not," she said with a laugh.

"We don't get mad at Storm when it rains, or Kurt when he sheds," he said with a smile. She laughed. "Your powers are your powers. I can't be mad at you because of them. Why did you think I would be?" he asked.

"The fragment of you in my head was. More at him-self than me."

"**Him**-self?"

"It's not really **you** anymore. I mean it has your memories and all, but only since I absorbed you.. It only knows what happen to you in the last year because I do. Cody's pretty much given up thinking."

"The kid you absorbed when you first got your powers?" he asked. She nodded.

"He misses **living**. I feel bad for the kid. Sabertooth likes messing with him. Showing Cody his memories. Scaring the crap out of him." she sighed as she explained the war inside her head.

"Can you make him stop?"

"**I **can't. He won't listen to his fifth-teen year old daughter. He 'don't **take** **orders** from a **kid**.'"she quoted as she rolled her eyes.

"Wait? Sabertooth's your **father**?"

"Foster father. His real names Victor **Creed**. Him and Raven adopted me when I was four. I only lived with him for six years, and he was never really **involved** in my life. It was more Raven's idea that they adopt me. After they finished rasing my brother, Graydon, they got divorced and I was shipped to Irene's house in Mississippi. I don't talk to Victor anymore. Not since he tried to **kidnap** me." she huffed. "I haven't called him **dad** in years. I wouldn't call him my father."

"I'm sorry."

"What for? You weren't a terrible dad."

"I...hmm." She smiled.

"I know what you meant, thanks." He smiled back.

"So, you have a brother?"

"I have two. Graydon's twenty four now. His working in Washington D.C. He wants to be a politician. Change the world, make it a better place us. He's kind of the black sheep of the family, cause he's human." She saw the look of surprise on his face. "Biases works** both** **ways, **you know. You're used to hearing about human parents freak out about their mutant kids. Imagine two mutants have a human child."

"Rogue, we're **all** human."

"I **know** that. But what else am I suppose to say to separate the two. The only other word I can think of is **normal**, which would imply that we're **abnormal**. We're **not**!" she insisted. "There just ain't enough of us yet to set a precedent."

"So, what you're other brother like?" he asked changing the subject. She smiled.

"You already know Kurt."

"Kurt? Kurt is your brother?.........Raven?.....Raven Darkholme?" he asked. She nodded.

"One big estranged mutant family."

"Does Kurt know?"

"Not yet. He was so freaked out about Raven. I didn't want to bombard him with too many new family members at once. I've been trying to get Graydon to come to Bayville to meet him, but he's so busy these days. He keeps saying he can't leave Washington. He has too much work to meet his little brother."

"Why don't you tell him he has a sister?"

"I already **treat** him like a little brother. I know he'll be happy about it, but," she sighed. "Something's holding me back. I don't know what it is."

"Is it because of the Kurt in your head? That's why you didn't want to tell me about your powers because you thought I would be mad."

"That **was** it for you." She took a minute to think. Scott stayed silent giving her the time she needed. "Kurt's fragment was freaked out about everything in my head too. He couldn't handle Sabertooth. **No one** could handle Sabertooth." she sighed. "I'm glad I absorbed Eric."

"Why?"

"After I absorbed him he wasn't **angry** like everyone else. He doesn't **resent** me for taking him away from himself. He said that my powers are a gift. That he's apart of **me** now, not Magneto. He always says that the other fragments are too. That the don't belong to who-ever I absorbed them from any more....... He.......He doesn't work against me like they do. He doesn't yell at me for looking though his memories, he **encourages** it. He was actually **happy** when I told the Professor and Logan where his base was. Not because he was gonna be near himself again, but because I was applying his knowledge like it was my own. After I absorbed him my head got quite. I could actually think again. Everyone's **scared** of him. So, when he told them all to shut up**,** they did**.** Even Victor. I don't how much longer I could have took all the screaming.

"There was screaming?" he asked concerned.

"Before Eric, all the time. None of them were happy about being in my head. Cody was loud at first. He would ask so many questions." She laughed. "The fragments of you and Kurt were always trying to explain things to him. It just freaked him out more. The yelling was at it's worst when we found out Mystique was Kurt's mom. Sabertooth would not **shut up**. He keep screaming and screaming at Raven 'Is he my son or not? I deserve to know.'" She rolled her eyes. "They weren't even on the same continent when Kurt was born."

"Do you know who Kurt's father is?"

"No.** Mystique** doesn't know who Kurt father is."

"How could she not know?"

"It's complicated."

"How?"

"I really don't want to go into it. Can't help anyone if we do."

"But Kurt.."

"Has had a hard enough time dealing with Raven as it is. Knowing about his birth mother, all it's ever done is hurt him. He doesn't need to know about the five or six people who **might** be his father."

"Is that really your choice to make?"

"The Professor's never told him about what Logan found in Germany."

"Yeah, but," he stopped. "Wait...You weren't there. How do you know about that?"

"Jean's fragment. So, I'm not the only one who thinks it's best that he doesn't know everything right now."

"But..."

"I know. People shouldn't keep secrets from each other. Kurt should know everything we do. But he's so sweet, and young, and **innocent**. He doesn't need to find out how bad the world really is yet. At least not for a few more years. Till he can handle it better. And I think Logan and the Professor agree. Or else they would have told him about what they thought Magneto did to him."

"Thought?"

"Eric never did anything to Kurt when he was a baby. Raven was in labor for ten hours. After she gave birth to Kurt she passed out from the pain. Mystique didn't turn blue until she was thirteen. Mutates were rare back then. No one knew that we could be born with parts of our mutation," she said as she pulled softly on piece of her white hair. "Mystique woke up the next day and stumbled around the room until she found Kurt in a crib. She took one look at him and she thought something was wrong. She thought what the Professor did. That Magneto had altered him somehow. So, she tried to run away, and get her baby to safety. You know the rest of it."

"You're sure he didn't do anything to him?"

"I've got those memories from both their points of view. Eric spent hours by Raven's side helping her give birth, and when she was asleep he took care of Kurt."

"Does Mystique know that?"

"Yeah, she went back to the castle after she made sure Kurt was alright. Her and Eric yelled at each other for a few hours, but it all came out."

"I don't get it. If she knew Kurt wasn't in danger then why did she leave him with the Wagners?"

"She watched how they interacted with him for a while, before she went back to the castle. They took Kurt in as their own within minutes of finding him. Graydon was only eight then and he had spent most of his life with Irene instead of his mother. Raven didn't think she could be as good of a parent as them. She was right of course. Kurt had a great childhood. That was the best thing she ever did for him." Scott took a deep breath.

"Wow. Maybe you should tell Kurt all that. He might not feel so abandoned."

"I was thinking about it, but....if I told him one part of it I would have to tell him everything. I don't think he's ready to hear it. He's finally okay with what he knows about Mystique. Discovering the rest of it, right now, might hurt him. I don't want to hurt him."

"I still don't think that's your choice to make."

"Neither Magneto or Mystique are stopping by anytime soon for a heart to heart. I'm the only one in a position to tell him anything."

"Maybe you should ask the Professor about all this," he said..

"I plan to, but not this month. He's got a lot to deal with right now. With Magneto and everything." Scott nodded.

"What's going on between you and him? You told us the 'short verison', but no details."

"I know. I was still angry at ya all then. I thought you had forgotten me. Now, I know better. I already told you I went to go meet him yesterday."

"Yeah, why? You how dangerous he is."

"I do. It's just, the fragment in my head, he so nice and polite and **helpful**. The letter I got from him, it said to met him if I wanted help with my powers. I knew the he was gonna want something in return. I just hoped that I could say no and leave, but maybe **learn** something I didn't from the conversation. I was caught off guard by a tactic he used."

"What **tactic**?"

"He tried to seduce me."

"What?" Scott exclaimed horrified. "But...... he's so old." She laughed.

"Old age doesn't stop people from having sex, Scott."

"I know that."

"It defiantly didn't stop **him** from trying, and he's not that old. His **body's** not that old."

"You think he attractive?" he asked in disbelief.

"NO! Of course not," she said quickly.

_His other hand found hers. He took off her glove. Their fingers intertwined. He flashed_

_her a knowing smile._

_"Do you want to leave?" She weakly shook her head no. "Whatever could be the reason?" He looked down at their hands. He rubbed his thumb against the back of her hand. She sucked in a breath._

She blushed as she tried to push the memory back. "Maybe a little," she said.

_"You don't want this feeling to end?" He gazed into the eyes again. "Do you?"_

_"No," she said quietly as she stared into his eyes. Unable to look anywhere else_

"Maybe more than a little," she said.

_"It does not have to. You, and I can enjoy countless moments just like this one."_

"Rogue?" Scott said calling for her attention. It drew her out of her memories.

"Okay, YES! I'm attracted to him," she admitted. "I mean, that's what you would **expect **out of this situation, right?" she asked quickly. "Eric's the first man to ever look at me like that. He was my first kiss."

"He let you absorb him again?"

"No," she laughed. "Couse not. I already know too much about him. He can touch me without my powers going off."

"How?" he asked.

"I..." She paused. "You know? I never thought to ask," she said with a laugh. "How could I have not?" she asked herself.

"How do you think he did it?" Scott asked.

"If I had to guess......I don't know....Maybe some kind of magnetic shield or some kind of device that could block my powers........ Huh"

"What?"

"Maybe he's never **actually** touched me. Just made me **think** he has." She glanced up to see the look of pure horror on Scott's face. "I'm sure that's not it. It's not like him to be cheap that way," she tried to assure him. _'I think....' _

"What else happened?" he asked trying to get away from that subject.

"Well we talked for a while. He kept pointing out reasons why I should join him. This afternoon half his argument was that I should join him because ya all had forgotten me. When that bastard's the one who made it happen to begin with. Just like he did with Warren."

"The Angel?" She nodded.

"You remember how he knocked that little girl into the water."

"It was an accident."

"No it wasn't. Magneto was there on the bridge. He used his powers to tie a pole around Warren leg causing him to trip, and knock her in the water. Then after he saved her, Magneto made the first comment about how Warren had pushed her into the water himself. Eric turned those people on the bridge against him."

"And then tried to use that argument to recruit him," Scott finished.

"Exactly."

"That horrible."

"I know." She glanced up the clock and saw that it was 9:36. "Scott do you mind if we talk about this more tomorrow. It's getting kind of late."

"It's only 9:30."

"We're been up since six this morning. It's been a long day for me."

"For me too, **Anna**."

"Shut up." They both laughed as they stood up ans started to walk out of the room.

"What? You don't like your first name? What wrong with it?"

"Nothing," she said as they climbed the stairs. "It's a good name. I just like Rogue better. It suits me more. I mean which sounds more like me?" she asked as they got to her room.

"I think that both Rogue and Anna Marie sound good." Mid way through Scott's comment Kurt teleported in front of them with a bowl half way full with popcorn.

"Who's Anna Maire?" he asked with his mouthful of popcorn. Half way through his sentence Kitty phased through the door.

"Rogue, duh," Kitty said. Rogue raised an eyebrow. "It was, like, on your report card,"she explained. "But you like Rogue better, right?"

"Yeah," she said with a smile.

"What wrong with Anna Marie?" Kurt asked. "It is a beautiful name."

"Nothing's wrong with it!" Rogue yelled. Kurt winced. "I already had this conversation."

"Wow," Scott said quietly. "You really **do **treat him like a little brother." Rogue gave him a deadly glare. He only smiled back at her.

"Oh my God!" Kitty started. "Are you, like, finally going to tell him?" Kitty asked.

"Tell who what?" Kurt asked.

"No, I'm not telling him." Rogue said.

"Why not?" Scott asked.

"I don't know." Rogue exclaimed.

"She not ready to yet. It's, like, to much responsibly." Kitty said. "She doesn't want to do anything wrong."

"Oh.." Scott said while shaking his head in understanding.

"Do what wrong?" Kurt asked.

"Nothing, Kurt." Kitty said with a smile. "Don't worry about it."

"But.."

"You'll know when the time is right. Trust me?" Kitty asked with a smile

"Yeah." he said with a smile.

"Good. Let's go watch a movie!" Kitty said with a grin.

"Do either of you want to watch?" Kurt asked.

"What movie?" Rogue asked.

"We don't know yet."said Kitty.

"How about 'A Few Good Men?' I've been having the urge to watch it since yesterday," Rogue said.

"I, like, love Tom Cruise movies."

"So, that's a yes?" Rogue asked. Kitty nodded.

"I thought you wanted to go to sleep?" Scott asked.

"I do, but I would rather relax and watch a movie with ya all than go to bed. Tomorrow's Saturday. I'll just sleep in." Jean walked into the hallway.

"What's going on?" Jean asked.

"We're going to watch a movie. Do you, like, want to join us?" Kitty asked.

"What movie?" She asked.

"'A Few Good Men.'" Rogue answered.

"How come you only get mad at **me **when you have to answer the same question twice?" Kurt asked. Rogue walked up to Kurt and put her arm around his shoulder.

"Cause you're special," she said as they started to walk together.

"Special in a good way or a bad way?" They stopped walking. She turned to stand in front of Kurt.

"In a good way, a very good way. You're...." She looked behind Kurt to see Kitty giving her two thumbs up, and Scott nodding his head telling her to go on. Jean was looking at the two of them confused. Not really sure what was going on."You're.........you're like a little brother to me." Behind Kurt, Kitty was jumping up and down with the biggest grin on her face. Scott and Jean were staring at each other. From the looks of it they were talking telepathically.

"Really?" Kurt asked. She nodded "Then, you're like a big sister to me." She smiled.

"Come on, lets's go make some more popcorn for the movie," Rogue said. "We'll meet ya all in the common room," she said as she grabbed Kurt's hand and he teleported them into the kitchen. A grin spread across Kurt face as he put the popcorn on the table.

"Hmm?" He took out the box of popcorn.

"What?" Rogue asked as she grabbed a bag of popcorn from the box.

"Don't little brothers get to **annoy** their big sisters?" he asked. She took the plastic off of the bag and put it in the microwave.

"Yeah, all the time," she said as she set the timer, and pushed start. She threw away the plastic from the popcorn and turned to look at him. "But,"

"But what?" Kurt asked. She smirked.

"But, big sisters they get to **torture** their little brothers,"

"They do not!"

"It true," she teased. "You want proof? Ask my older brother. He used to do all kinds of crazy things to me when we were kids. Which is good for me cause now I got all these ideas for pranks floating around my head. I've been itching to try them out on someone, and now I got me little brother to pick on," she could see the sweat forming on his forehead. She laughed. "Relax, Kurt. I'm just teasing you."

"Really?"

"Yeah." Kurt let out a sigh of relief. Kitty walked into the kitchen holding the phone. A look of dread was on her face.

"Kitty what's wrong?" Kurt asked.

"Rogue, you have a phone call," Kitty said as she slowly handed the phone to her. Rogue took a deep breath as she put the phone to her ear.

"Eric?" Rogue asked.

"Indeed." She could practically hear the smirk on his face. "Hello, Anna." Magneto said.

"Haven't we talked **enough** for one day?" she asked annoyed.

"Perhaps," he replied simply. She sighed.

"What do you want, bucket head?" He chuckled at the nickname.

"You already know what I want from you, my girl." She rolled her eyes.

"What do you want **right now**? Why are you calling me?"

"Do I have to have a reason?" he asked casually.

"I'm not in mood for this," she informed him annoyed.

"You were earlier."

"Well, things change."

"Since this afternoon?" he asked.

"You of all people should know how much a conversation or two can change a person's life."

"Yes, I should, and I do." She heard him sigh into the phone. "So, our last conversation **backfired**. Causing you to form stronger relationships with your family, instead of weakening the ties that bind you to that house as had I intended. A shame."

"A **shame**?" she screamed into the phone. She pressed the power button, hanging up on him. Ten seconds later the phone rang again. "WHAT?"

"Hmm...I'm Amy.....Jubilee's friend," she said softy with fear in her voice. "She told me to call her back in fifteen minutes, so Rogue could talk to her uncle."

"Amy. I'm Rogue," she said calmly. "I was having an argument with him, and I hung up. I thought it was him calling back. Sorry, I yelled at you. I'm going to find Jubilee now."

"Rogue, I'll take it," Kurt said. "It'll be faster." She nodded as she gave the phone to Kurt.

"She said she was going to the common room." Kitty told him.

"Got it," he said as he teleported out of the room. Rogue opened the microwave and took out the bag of popcorn.

"Rogue, are you okay?" Kitty asked.

"It has been too long a day," she said as she got the bowl.

"Rogue?" Kitty asked as Rogue was opening the popcorn bag and poring it into the bowl.

"I was good mood and he ruined it. That's all it is. I'll be fine," she said as she turned around to leave the kitchen. "Are you okay?" Kitty nodded.

"I'm just worried about you. How long to you think Magneto's going to try and recruit you?"

"I don't know Kitty. He a persistent man. I'm just gonna have to keep saying no to him. Maybe one day he's take the **hint,**" she said with a smile. "But, it's over for tonight. Let's go enjoy the movie, and forget about Magneto for a few hours."

"Okay," Kitty said with small smile.

And I'm done for today!!!!!!! YEAH!!!! Thank you for reading, and please review.

Hey, I had an idea. Sometimes I'm little vague on things. So, if you guys have any questions about what's going on, or you want to know more details about something I said once, or about something that happened in the past, everything really, ask in a review. And I'll see if I can work answering your questions in to the story. If not I'll try to answer them in the part where I'm thanking you all for being awesome!

Speaking of which.....

Darkness-Lightness: Thank you the story alert, and the review. I hope this chapter was to your liking. I look forward to hearing from you again.

Ianob: I hear ya. I love seeing intelligent versions of these characters all well. People are a very complex. There can be dozens of motives driving them to the choices they make. I like to take to time in my writing to convey that idea. I'm glad that it being noticed. Thank you for reading, and for writing this awesome review. I hope you like this chapter, and I look forward to hearing from you again.

Eris R Lebeau: Hello again! I love your reviews! They are so long and full of complements. I don't know where to start. Oh, yes, I do. With quoting you. 'I like how Magneto **(at least we're pretty sure it was him)** used his telepathy to make Rogue's friends "forget" her.'

I love how you assume nothing. Nor should you. Keep reading in between the lines, and over them, and under them, and anywhere else you can think of. The twists and surprises aren't done yet. I really hope you're going to enjoy it.

I glad you liked the bit with the glove. At first I wasn't sure if I was going to put it in, but after thinking about it for a while, the idea of him standing their with that ever present smirk on his face was too good of a scene not to use. Again, thank you for reading and writing your amazing reviews. I hope you loved this chapter, and I can't wait to hear what else you have to say.

Sleep26, and Bunnywishes: Thank you both for the reviews, and story alerts. I glad you both are finding my story interesting! I hope you guys liked this chapter, and I can't wait to hear from you both again.

SevenZsevenNTYA: Hello, again. Thanks for the story alert! I love it when people want to keep reading what I'm writing. Agreed on all counts of your first paragraph. I addressed how little they all know about her in this chapter. Now at least Scott knows stuff.

About Xavier, he likes to tell his students the **bare minimum**. So, there's quite a lot they don't know about. You going to see how this annoys Rogue, since she knows much more than she is suppose too.

And thanks again for being my human spell checker. I used both those words in this chapter and I spelled them both **right** this time because of **you ^.^** As I've said before I'm trying to improve my writing and all you've done is help. So, once again thank you, and feel free to continue pointing these mistakes out. It keeps making me better than I was. I hope you enjoyed this chapter and I look forward to seeing what else you have to say about everything. Till next time.

Lanea Namara, Howlinfwolf666, Kai3anime, slayerstoryguy, and Gatemaster: thank you all for reading, and for the story alerts. I hope you all have enjoyed this chapter.

Seshiru Hikari: thank you for reading, the story alert and for putting my fic on your favorite story list. I hope you've liked this chapter.

Mara Jade Angel: thank you for reading and adding my fic to your favorite story list. I hope you enjoyed this chapter.


	4. Chapter 4

Hello, party people. I've updated!!!! Okay here's the deal. Eris R. Lebeau, who is awesome in every sense of the word, reviewed and told me something about emphasizing that had never crossed my mind before. That within thoughts _'Like this one,' _if I wanted to emphasizing something I would just put it in regular front. _'Like _this_.' _So, that's what I'm doing for now on, because I like it. ^.^

Anyway, in other news, within this chapter some people are going to be playing a game. If you have this game and know how to play. I suggest that you pull it out and play along. I think you'll enjoy the chapter more. If you don't, sorry. It's not the whole chapter I swear, and not understanding it won't keep you from enjoying it... I hope.

Sorry if I've given too much away by saying all this, but I thought I've give you guys a warning and put the idea in your heads. Again thanks for reading, and I hope you all like this chapter.

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Four

Rogue rolled over in bed and winced at the sunlight coming through the window. She glanced at the clock on her night stand. It read 12:10pm.

'_I'll get up at twelve-thirty,'_ she thought to herself happily as she pulled the covers back over her head. Just as she starting to nod off again, she heard a very familiar bamf noise.

"Oh, big sister," Kurt part said part sung. "Mr. McCoy said you're not allowed to sleep through the afternoon exercises."

"Ten more minutes," she murmured.

"But they _started_ ten minutes ago," he exclaimed in protest.

"Seven more minutes," she grumbled.

"Rogue," he screamed at he rocked her shoulders. "You have to get up _now_."

"Kurt stop that," she demanded at she shook his hands off of her shoulders. "I'm trying to sleep."

"That's the problem. You need to get up. You've been sleeping for over ten hours. What more will seven minutes do?" he asked.

"Make me feel better," she mumbled as she turned over and got comfortable again.

"Alright," Kurt said in defeat. "But don't blame me when you have to sit through a lecture."

"I won't," she muttered. She heard him sigh as he teleported out of her room._'Might as well sleep in till two. I'm gonna get yelled at anyway._' She smiled as she fell back to sleep.

She glimpsed at the clock. It read 12:47pm.

'_Not yet,'_ she thought as she yawned. She rolled over again and started to pull the blanket to cover her eyes from the sunlight. She stopped when there was none. _'Did Kurt close the curtains?'_ She asked herself.

"No, I did." She opened her eyes quickly to see Magneto sitting at a silver table she had never seen before. The table had two matching chairs. He was wearing black pants and a simple white button down shirt. The sleeves were rolled up to his elbow. He had a brown trench coat which was hanging on the back on his chair. He looked at her with a smile. "Good afternoon, my dear." She sat up.

"Eric? What are you doing in my bedroom?" she asked nervously.

"What does it look like I'm doing, Anna?" he asked her calmly. She glanced over at the table again. There was a beautiful metallic chess set on it. The black knight moved from d4 to e6 seemingly by itself.

"It looks like you're playing with yourself."

"I was playing alone," he said ignoring her statement, "but now that you finally awake," he said as the pieces moved back to their original places, "we can a game or two. Please, have a seat." He pointed to the chair across from him as it moved out from under the table. She took a deep breath as she wrapped her mind around her current situation.

"If I wanted to leave the room right now," she started to ask.

"You would find that the door will not open."

"If I screamed?"

"No one would hear you, and before you ask. No one is even going to_ think_ about entering this room for quite some time." She laughed.

"You're holding my captive in my own bedroom?" she asked in disbelief.

"Yes," he informed her.

"How long do you plain on keeping me here?"

"As long as it takes."

"As long as _what_ takes?" she asked worried.

"That's a very good question."

"I know. That's why I asked it," she said annoyed. She waited for him to say something, he didn't. "You not going to answer any questions that matter are you?"

"Well, that depends entirely on you, Anna." He turned his gaze back to the board. She looked as well. The pieces started to move by themselves. Pawns, knights, bishops, rooks, queens, and kings all moving fast around the board. White then black. Pieces were being exchanged. The advantage were being won, lost, then won again. Only a few pieces were left on the board. Black's queen was lost because white's knight forked the king and queen, causing black to move his king out of check. White moved it's rook to c8. Checkmate. Black's king fell over in defeat.

"The winner get to ask the loser a question?"she asked. He smirked.

"Correct, and the loser must answer the question honestly, and to the extent that the winner is satisfied."

"What about stalemates?" she asked as the pieces returned to their starting positions.

"A waste of time for both of us."

"You don't think I gonna win any games, do you?"

"On the contrary, Rogue. I looking forward to the challenge."

'_Huh? So, that's where Pietro gets it from.'_ she thought.

"I would prefer that you stay away from that subject," he said firmly.

"I would prefer that you stay out of my head," she yelled. "What kind of challenge are you gonna get from knowing my every move?" she asked infuriated. He chuckled.

"Very well. Once we start playing, I promise to refrain from reading your mind." She looked at herself.

"Can I get dressed first?" she asked vexed.

"I'm hardly stopping you," he said with a smirk.

"Eric!" she exclaimed as her face blushed. "I'm not getting undressed in front of you." He chuckled as the bedroom door opened slighty. "You're gonna let me leave the room?"

"To go into the bathroom yes. Every member of your family is outside blissfully unaware of your strife."

She sighed as she got out of bed and went over to her dresser. She pulled out a pair of black sweat pants, and a black tank-top, socks, and a bra. She went to her top draw to get a pair of gloves. It was empty. _'I had three pairs in here last night. Where are they?'_

"You do not require them," Magneto informed her. She looked over to him incredulously.

"What?"

"You heard me," he said as he stood and walked over to her. He stared into her eyes. "You do not need to cover yourself in clothing while in my company," he took her empty hand in his. "Your skin is not dangerous to me."

"I know that, Eric," she muttered. His other hand went on her neck. His fingers brushed over one of the marks he had left. She sucked in a breath.

"Then why were you so insistent on wearing them?" he asked softy.

"Habit, I guess," she said, her tone matched his. He brought his face closer to hers. She leaned in slightly. His lips were approaching her's. She blinked. _'What am I doing? I can't do this with him. Not now.'_ She took her hand out of his, and walked past him. "I'm gonna go get dressed," she mumbled unwilling to look him in the eye. She walked out of her room slowly. Once in the hallway she started to run towards the stairs. A Magnetic shield provented her from going very far.

"The bathroom is that over _there_, Rogue." She turned to look at him. He was standing within her room's doorway. He pointed to the bathroom. "Considering you live here I thought you would know that," he said with a smirk. She walked pasted him and the bathroom. The door slammed close behind her. She put her clothes on the sink. She took off her pajamas, and put on the clothes she had brought with her. She opened the first draw on the sink and took out a brush.

'_My hair is a mess,'_ she thought as she brushed it. _'I was gonna take a shower and relax,'_ she thought in annoyance. Her plains for the afternoon were ruined.

"You still may if you wish," he reported. He standing outside of the door. She sighed as she glanced over at the shower.

'_No, I can't.'_ The idea of being naked while being his prisoner just felt wrong.

"I can assure, Anna, I am a gentleman."

"I know that," she yelled. She looked over at the shower stall again. _'Maybe later,'_ she thought with a sigh as she grabbed a hair-tie off of the sink and pulled her hair back into a ponytail. She turned on the faucet and splashed water on her face. Then grabbed a towel from the rack and dried it and her hands. She opened the second draw of the sink to pull out her makeup. It wasn't there. _'Guess I don't need _that_ either,'_ she thought in frustration. She sighed as she pulled her hair out of the pony-tail. She threw the hair-tie back onto the sink. She grabbed her pajamas, and threw them into the hamper. She opened the door. Magneto was standing to her left, blocking her path to the stairs.

"After you, Anna," he said as pointed to her bedroom door. Magneto put his hand on her shoulder guiding her into the room. The door closed behind them. He walked past her to sit in the same seat he had been before. She sighed as she sat down across from him. "I guess I'm black," she said.

"If you would prefer to be white," he started to say.

"No, it's okay. When do we start?" she asked.

"Now," he said as he used his powers to move his pawn to e4.

'_And you're not reading my mind, right?'_ she thought. He didn't say anything. _'You're an ass-hole.'_ Nothing. _'I swear my allegiance to you.' _Still nothing. He kept staring at the board oblivious to her train of thought. She looked at the board. "Pawn to e5," she said. He looked at her curiously. "If you don't have to lean forward, why should I?" she asked. He chuckled as he used his powers to advance her pawn to e5. He moved his knight to f3. "Knight to g6," she said the piece moved accordingly.

"Are you only going to mirror my moves?"

"Maybe."

"I would prefer if you didn't."

"Why?" she asked, although she already knew the answer.

"It's irritating," he said as he moved his knight to e5, taking her pawn.

"Being held captive is irritating, but you ain't gonna stop doing it. So, we're both just gonna have to deal with each other's annoying habits. Pawn to d6." He moved her pawn to d6, which was now threatening his knight.

"That was a good move."

"I know," she said smugly. He smirked as he moved his knight back to f3. "Knight takes e4," she smirked as he moved his pawn off of the board and her knight onto e4. He moved his queen to e2. It now threatened her knight. "Queen to e7," she said mirroring his move.

"You aren't the only one capable of copying moves, my dear," he said with a smile as he moved his pawn to d3. Threatening her knight the same way she had threatened his.

'_I wonder how _irritated_ I can make him.'_ she thought to herself. "Knight to f6," she said copying his move from before. He moved her piece and his own Bishop to c5. "Bishop to e6," she said._ 'Maybe, if I can get him angry enough... Just have to say what he would for a while,' _she thought. He moved her piece and his Queen's side knight to c3. "Knight to c6." Her knight slammed down on the square. He castled queen-side. "King castles Queen's side." The black king and castle rose into the air and slammed down on their respective squares.

"Are you trying to enrage me?"

"Yes," she answered honestly.

"Why?"

"'That's a very good question,'" she quoted his statement from before.

"'I know. That's why I asked it,'" he quoted following her lead.

"You're gonna have to win the game before I answer a question that matters. It's your move, sugar." He turned his gaze away from the smirk on her face back to chess board. _'This is only gonna work if he doesn't read my mind.' _She took a second to think about what she was going to say. "Must be annoying," she said while looking at the board. He looked up at her again.

"What?" he asked.

"Knowing you're able to, anytime you want, but you're not gonna."

"Going to what?" he demanded to know, his tolerance fading.

"Read my mind."

"How do you know I haven't?" She shook her head no.

"You haven't," she said with conviction.

"How can you be so certain?"

"You promised. You're honor bound not to."

"What is there is stop me from going back on my word?"

"The fact that you gave it," she looked him in the eye. "You're still trying to_ recruit_ me, Eric. The _last_ thing you want to destroy is what _little_ trust I have in you. I know what means you're willing to use to get what you want. I know that killing isn't beneath you. Neither blackmail. The promises you've made me, teaching me about my powers, never feeling loneliness again. That life with_ you_ would be better than with the X-Men. Me believing that you're gonna do all that. That you're capable and willing to, that's the _only _reason I would_ ever_ consider joining you. If I did join you, and found out about it, and I_ would_ find out about it," she assured him. "I've leave you in a heart beat. So, am I certain you haven't read my mind? Oh yeah," she laughed. "You wouldn't _dare._" She glanced down at the board."It's still your move, sugar." He looked down at the board to decide. "Sometime today would be nice." He grunted in frustration as he moved his bishop to f6 capturing her knight. "Queen takes f6." His bishop rose into the air and embedded itself into the wall. _'I can't believe this is working,'_ she thought with a smile. "A bishop for a knight. Huh? Well, that's _almost_ an even trade," she said pushing him a little more.

"In certain games the knight is far more valuable than the bishop."

"But we ain't playing blitz chess, sugar. We playing the regular old, you can take twenty minutes to decide on a single move if you really want to. Which you seem to prefer." White's knight moved to e4 with such an intensity it shook the table. She sat through his display of anger unfazed. "Queen to h6." He moved the piece. "That's check, sugar."

"I am aware of the rules, Anna," he yelled while staring at the board.

"Just checking.......Ha. Get it? Just _checking_?" she asked with a laugh.

"I understood the terrible pun perfectly well. It didn't warrant an explanation," he said as he moved f-file's knight to d2.

"Pawn to d5." He moved the pawn and his threatened knight to g3. She looked at the board and decided her next move. _'Perfect,'_ she thought "Knight to d4." He moved it. With a sigh he moved his threatened queen to the only safe square available, e1. "Bishop to g4." He move it and his pawn to h3. _'I have to move the bishop back.....unless.'_ She glanced over her knight's position in relation to the king. _'That'll work,'_ she thought with a smile. "Knight to e2." The piece moved. "And you don't need me to tell you that's check, right?"

"Correct," he said through his teeth, trying to hold in his anger. Eric moved his king to b1.

'_I can't believe he didn't exchange pieces,'_ she thought. "Knight to 3c," she said with a smirk.

"I wouldn't have been so quick to lose my knight in a premature check," he said as he moved his pawn to b3 taking the knight.

"I wouldn't have been so quick to expose my king. Queen to b6." The queen moved to put the king in check again. "We've been over this," she said with a smile.

"Yes, we most certainly have," he said annoyed as he moved his king out of check to A1.

'_I got nothing else to distract him with,' _she thought "Bishop to d7." He moved it and his rook to b1 threatening her queen.

"Is my rook worth your queen?" he asked.

"No. Bishop to b4. Is my bishop worth your pawn?" His pawn moved to b4 taking the Bishop.

'_He took the bait?'_ she thought with a smile. _'Not that he had much choice. I would have taken his pawn my next turn if he didn't do it, but I don't think that's why he did it,' _she thought "Actually it was, sugar. Queen to f6." He moved the piece.

"It's not checkmate," he said as he moved his rook to b2 blocking her attack.

"I never said it was," she told him. _'I need to get his queen out of play,'_ she thought. "H-file's rook to e8." He moved it and his d-file knight to e4 with a smirk on his face. _'Why is he happy? My pawns right there. The knight may be threatening my queen, and protecting his, but I'm just gonna captive it. It's a waste of a knight... He's only looking on one side of the board,' _she realized in disbelief. "Pawn takes e4. Try looking at the _whole_ board. Not just king's side," she said condescendingly.

The knight rose in the air. The pawn slammed down taking it's place. His lost knight joined the rook embedded in the wall. He moved his pawn to e4 taking her piece. Her black pawn lifted into the air and dematerialized before their eyes. "I hope you have extra pieces, sugar. That's three we've lost already. Rook to e7." The piece moved.

"I can assure you, we'll manage," he said as he moved his knight to h5. Threatening her queen.

"Queen to g6." He moved her piece as well as his knight to f4. Attacking her queen again. "Queen to g5." He moved it and his knight to d5. This time threatening her rook. _'Damn pawn. Now,_ _I have to move my rook back,_' she thought in annoyance. "Rook to e8." He stopped to study the board again. _'Only reason he's doing so bad is because he doesn't have time to think. What else can I do?' _She took a second and came up with a new tactic. She yawned. He looked up at her.

"Do you have any manners, girl?" he asked her furious.

"Sorry, sugar. I'll make sure I cover my mouth next time."

"That is not what I was referring to," he said as he moved his pawn to h4. Threatening the queen."Queen to g4." He moved the piece and stared at the board. She yawned again, this time putting her hand over her mouth. He glared at her. There was a rage in his eyes she had never seen before. _'I better tone it down a little before he loses it,'_ she thought. "I don't know why I'm yawning so much. I was asleep for hours. What did you think was so rude? I'll try not to do it again," she said with a pleasant smile. He took a deep breath. His demeanor soften slightly.

"Nothing, forget I said anything."

"Are you sure?" she asked concerned.

"Yes, yes. Of course," he said quickly as he looked at the board again.

"_I don't want him to calm down _that_ much,'_ she thought. "Is it _still_ your turn?"

"YES!" he screamed as he moved his knight to c3.

"Sorry, I lost track with all the talking. I didn't mean to upset ya, sugar. Bishop to c6." He moved her Bishop and his own to d3. _'Finally,'_ she thought as she looked at his last move. "Queen takes g2." He moved her Queen to g2. His pawn lifted into air and disappeared like the other one. He quickly moved his Bishop back to f1 to threaten her queen. _'That ain't gonna stop me from taking his rook,'_ she thought with a smile. "Queen takes h1." He moved the pieces. His anger although intense didn't cause him to destroy the rook as he had the other pieces. He simply put it to the side with his other two pawns. He took another deep breath calming himself. Then, he moved his pawn to f3. Clearing the lane for his queen to attack h4. "Queen takes f3." he calmly moved the fallen pawn to the side and her queen to f3. He then moved his pawn to b5. "Bishop takes e4." The piece moved.

"Knight takes e4," he said as he moved her bishop off of the board and put his knight in it's place. She looked at him surprised. "The privilege of stating one's move aloud is reserved for you alone?"

"Course not, sugar," she said with a smile.

"Stop calling me that. It's demeaning."

"I was wondering how long you were going to put up with it,"she said._ 'Took him long enough to calm down. But it's to late, I'm taking his queen,'_ she thought. "Rook to d1," she said. The piece moved accordingly putting the king in check.

"Rook to b1," he said as he used his rook to protect his king.

"Rook takes e1." With a smirk she watched as his queen was moved off of the board. Her rook took it's place on the square.

"Rook take e1." he said as he moved her rook to the sidelines, and put his rook on the square. She smiled.

"Whose mirroring who?" she asked with a smile. "Queen to c3." He moved the queen. It was now threatening both his king and rook.

"King to b2," he said as he moved his king out of check.

"Queen takes e1." He moved his rook off of the board, and put her queen in it's place.

"Bishop to h3," he said as he moved the piece. "'And you don't need me to tell you that's check, right?'" he quoted.

"'Correct,'" she laughed. "Rook to e6." He moved her rook to protect her king.

"Knight to c5," he said while moving his knight to threaten her rook.

"Queen to e5." He moved her queen to the square. The move had threatening both his knight, and checked his king.

"King to c1," he said as he moved his king out of check.

"Queen takes c5," He moved her queen onto the square as his knight joined the other pieces on the side-line. She opened her mouth slightly.

"Not one word out of you," he said as he stared at the board.

"Take all the time you want, Eric. You figured out what I was doing. Game's over." He looked at the board for several minutes. She waited patiently for him to decide what his next move would be. He sighed. _'I wonder if he's still angry,'_ she thought to herself.

"No, I'm not," he informed her.

"Hey! You're not suppose to read my mind-" she yelled.

"Until the game is over, which it most certainly is," he said as he leaned forward and laid his king down. He looked up at her."The game has been over since you took my knight," he told her calmly. "You played well, given your tactic."

"Thank you."

"Do you think you could defeat me _without_ the theatrics?" he asked.

"I think so, but not till a_fter_ you answer my question." He chuckled.

"Which is?"

"What do you know about my powers?" He sighed.

"I was certain you would ask about my telepathy."

"Why should I obsess over your powers?. If you're a powerful telepath than there ain't a thing I can do about. If your not then half my fears are irrelevant. You either have them or you don't. Doesn't matter if I know about them or not. So, what do you know about my powers?" He leaned back in his seat, and just looked at her.

"What?" she asked. "...You're not trying to get out of answering are you? That was the only reason I played," she yelled at him. He stared at her for a few more moments before he burst out laughing. "What?" He continued laughing. "What is so funny."

"You are, my dear. You're a riot."

"What the hell is that suppose to mean?"

"I have found, over the past three days, that you, Anna, are an endless source of entertainment."

"What?" she cryed out in confusion and anger.

"I can think of hundreds of activities I would like to do with you. There are so many things you have never done. So much I can teach you, expose you to. They are millions of conversations we can have. The topics are numerous, and not one of them dull. We would both enjoy ourselves immensely, but I know that when I ask you to join me, you will say no. Each and every time. Out of loyalty to a team whose members barely know you."

"But..." she started to say.

"Yes, yes," he said interrupting. "Ms. Pride, Mr Summer, and your brother, who isn't aware that he is your brother."

"I told him yesterday."

"All of it?" he asked. "That must of taken _hours_. The boy seemed far too joyful this morning to have learned everything."

"I told him he was _like_ a little brother to me."

"Ah, he is still isn't aware that you share a mother."

"We don't!" she insisted. "Raven stopped being my mom when she dumped me on Irene, and Irene stopped being a parent when she helped Raven lie to me about the X-Men."

"Parents lie to their children often."

"To protect them. All their lie did was drive me away. If they would have just told me. Rogue there are two mutant teams in Bayville. One's the X-Men, the other's the Brotherhood. Both of them are good, but we want you to join our team because you're our daughter. I would have moved into that house and never thought about leaving. I would never have even considered joining the X-Men. But no they have to try and trick me, _manipulate_ me."

"Rogue, may I ask you something?" She glanced up at him.

"You just did." He chuckled

"Something else," he said with a smile. "You volunteer information you shouldn't so often. Why is that?" She looked away from him.

'_Crap! I am... How could I be so stupid?'_ she asked herself angrily.

"I doubt stupidly is to blame here. You're comfortable talking to the fragment of me in your head, aren't you?" he guessed. "You don't have to hide anything from him. You must go off and tangents constantly." She didn't answer him. She let out a sigh.

"Eric?" she asked quietly.

"Yes, Anna."

"What do you know about my powers?" He stared at her for a moment before he stood up. Her chair moved out from under the table. He stood in front of her and held his hand out to her. She didn't take it. "What are you doing?"

"Offering you my hand, to help you stand."

"I can stand up without help."

"I'm fully aware of that fact."

"Why do you want me to stand up anyway?" she asked.

"So, we can go sit somewhere else."

"Only other place to sit is the bed."

"Yes, that's what I had in mind." She looked at her bed, and then him. There could be only one thing he wanted to do on it.

"No," she said quickly while shaking her head.

"Rogue, who is the captor?" She sighed.

"You are," she answered bitterly.

"Who is the captive?"

"I am," she answered angrily.

"Can I control metal?"

"Yes," she said annoyed.

"What is that chair you're sitting in made out of?"

"Metal," she said softy. He held out his hand again.

"Take my hand, Rogue." She looked at his hand, then up at him.

"If you're such a big bad telepath, than _make_ me," she challenged as she put her arms across her chest. He leaned down, and put his hands on either side of the chair's armrests. He leaned his face down until it was almost touching hers.

"As, I've said before. You are an _endless_ source of entertainment, intellectually, and physically," he said with a smirk. He kissed her then. She stopped herself from leaning into him by pressing herself firmly against the back of the chair. Unfortunately, for her the back of the chair started to slowly move towards him. Pushing her with it. Then the bottom of the chair started to move as well, which caused her to stand up in front of him. He took her hand in his, as he broke the kiss. "Now, was that so difficult?" he asked as he led her onto the bed. He leaned up against the head of the bed as he pulled her onto his lap.

"What is with you and this position?" she asked.

"You don't like it?" he asked his hand slid up her back underneath her shirt. His other hand was pushing hair behind her ear.

"I didn't say that," she said, her breathing heavy. _'What am I doing?'_ she thought. She tried to pull away from him. He used the hand on her back to keep her from getting up. "Can I get up now?"

"No."

"Please?"

"No," he said he with a laugh.

"I can't do this with you," she yelled.

"That word again," he said with disgust. She rolled her eyes.

"I _shouldn't_ do this with you."

"Why not?" he asked her.

"You're holding me captive," she shouted in his face.

"And?" he asked calmly.

"And?" she screamed. "And? You don't _willingly_ have sex with you're captor."

"But, you want to."

"Yes! I want to, but that doesn't matter," she shouted.

"Why?"

"Because it's just _wrong_."

"Why?"

"I..." She screamed in frustration as she buried her face into his chest. She closed her eyes and took deep breaths, as she laid there on top of him.

"Rogue?" he asked.

"What?" she asked anxiously as she hugged his chest. Her head was facing the window unwilling to look at him.

"You don't have to be ashamed of relishing my touch," he told her gently as his figures ran up and down her arm softy. "You say no when it matters."

"It always matters."

"I beg to differ. Did Charles reprimand you for kissing me?"

"No."

"For engaging me in conversation?"

"No."

"Has his trust in you altered?"

"Yes... I think he trusts me more now."

"And there you have it, my girl."

"But, I shouldn't..."

"Enjoy my company?" he asked with a raised eyebrow. "But you do, quite a bit. Tell me, how much did you enjoy our chess game."

"A lot." She looked up at him. "Did I really make you that upset?" He glanced down at her.

"Do you mean to ask, did I let you win?"

"Yes. Did you?" He kissed her forehead.

"No." She closed her eyes as she layed her head back down on his chest. His hand was in her hair, running his fingers through it.

"Just checking," she said with a sigh. They looked into each other's eyes, and a moment later they both bursted out into hysterical laugher.

"Anna, that was the worst pun I have ever heard," he said while regaining his composure.

"Then why are you laughing so much?" She continued to laugh, this time at him.

"Quite, girl."

"Make me," she challenge with a grin.

"Gladly," he said as his hand went to her cheek, pulling her face up to his in a kiss. He deepened the kiss, she allowed him to. He pulled her against his lap. She moaned into his mouth. And then Green Sleeves started to play in the background. He broke the kiss.

"Is that a cell phone?" she asked out breath.

"Yes," he said bitterly.

"Is that _your_ cell phone?" she asked.

"Yes, _unfortunately_. Why now?" he asked no one in particular as his phone flew out of his trench coat pocket and into his hand. It flipped open and he put the phone to his ear. "Yes."

"Sir, he's almost within range," a woman's voice said.

'_Sounds like Graydon's posh girlfriend,'_ she thought to herself.

"One moment," he said into the phone. He looked into her eyes. "Off," he commanded.

"No! I'm not just some dog you can order around. Besides, I'm comfy."

"Now, Anna," he demanded.

"If you're so set on it then move me your self." He sighed.

"Very well." His arm wrapped around her waist, as he flipped them both over. He was now laying on top of her. He leaned in to kiss her again.

"Magneto, I'm sorry to interrupt, sir, but he will be in range within ten minutes," the woman's voice warned. He stood up off of her. She looked up at him, her face still flushed with desire.

"Dammit!" he screamed in frustration.

"Sir?"

"I'll be there shortly," he said as he closed the phone.

"Eric, what's going on?" He turned to the chair. He picked up his coat and put it on. "You're leaving?" she asked in disbelief.

"I have an appointment to keep which requires me to leave you. Just as things were starting to getting interesting." The board and pieces flew off of the table and onto the floor. "Keep the chess set," he said as the pieces in the wall flew, and the pawns reformed, to their proper places. The chairs and table flew together forming a silver sphere.

'_He's almost within range..._ _The Professor,' _she thought.

"Dammit!" he yelled again. He looked down at her. "We will speak about all this in great detail I promise you, but not now."

"As long as it takes for the Professor to get back to the institute," she said with a laugh. "You have a decent telepath sitting somewhere in the building making sure that no one knows you're here," she accused. "She was sitting somewhere in the café two days ago, and in your car yesterday. You're no-" She was interrupted by his lips hitting hers. His hands held her shoulders firmly. He broke the kiss.

"The only thing keeping me from taking you with me, my utterly brilliant girl, is a strong will and the desire to battle you on a terrain which you stand a chance of winning. Now, you will sit on that bed and stop trying to coax me into a conversation or I swear my resolve will falter and you will be leaving the institute with me never to return again." She looked into his eyes, searching for some sign that he was buffing. She knew he wasn't. She slowly backed away from him. She kept staring into his eyes, but she didn't dare make a sound. "We will speak again soon," he said as he lifted himself up into the air and into the sphere. She watched as his sphere flew out the window. It was met in the air by two others. They quickly faded into the horizon.

'_Who's in the third sphere?' _she asked as she let herself collapse onto her bed. She let out a sigh in relief_. 'I'll worry about all that later.'_ She turned her head to look at her clock. It read 2:26pm. _'Ten minutes than I'll go and find the Professor.' _

So, that's it for this chapter. Thanks for reading, and please review. When you do I tell you how awesome you are.

Speaking of which...

Eris R Lebeau: Hello again! I'm always looking forward to your reviews! I love reading them. You make me extremely happy I started writing for others. ^.^

I prefer the biomagnetic shield as well. The idea that he's tricking her into thinking he's touching her is deliciously evil, but I believe with this chapter I called Magneto's telepathic abilities into question. At least Rogue's going to be skeptical about it in the future.

Thank you for the complements about Rogue's powers. What I've writen is the view I've always had about them. What I feel she should be able to do given the nature of her powers. I've spent years daydreaming about her in various situations. This is just the first time I'm writing it down. I'm happy that my over- analysis of her powers is being well received.

And finally, thanks for the advice about emphasizing. As you can see I've taken it. Somehow, what you said never crossed my mind before. Yeah, I feel a little dumb. Oh well, I know it now. Anyway, I hope you loved this chapter and I can't wait to hear from you again.

archmagus: Hiya, you ego-inflater. ^.^ Thank you for writing that lovely review. Really, people like you are the reason I try so hard to make my theses chapters so complex but enjoyable at the same time. I'm glad your reading my story, and I hope you loved this chapter. I can not wait to hear from you again.

PrincessRhia: Thank you for the reading and putting my fic on your story alert.

RogueNya, and Jewell: thank you both for reading and reviewing.

ianob: Hi again. Yeah chapter three was a 'catch everyone up' one. I tried not to reexplain things too often. I'm glad it wasn't boring. I agree completely with your thoughts on Rogue's mental state. As I was writing it I was afraid that I was making her too comfortable in the mansion. This chapter was all about breaking her comfort zone, and making her question everything. Especially, how safe she really is at the institute. Again thank you for reading, I hoped you loved this chapter, and I can't wait to hear from you again.

RG Marie: thank you for reading, putting my fic on story alert and me on author alert. Although, this is the only fic I'm writing right now. So, you only going to get emails about this one. Again, thank you. I hope you enjoyed this chapter.


	5. Chapter 5

Hello everyone! It's a new chapter ^.^

Yeah I have nothing important to say right now.

I just curious how many people are going to read this completely pointless sentence.

Okay I'm done now, enjoy the chapter.

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Five

Glanced over at the clock on her night stand yet again. It read 2:37pm With a sigh she got up, and walked over to her dresser. She pulled out one of long sleeve green shirts and put it on. She opened her first draw. This time her gloves were there. Right where she had left them.

_'What?' _She grabbed a pair and put them on as she ran out of her room. She rushed into the bathroom and opened the second draw of the sink. Her makeup was just as she left it. It hadn't moved. She took a deep breath as she picked up what she needed and applied the make up to her face as she always had before. After she was done she walked out of the bathroom and towards her room. Rogue stood in her doorway as she glanced inside her room. There was no one there. _'Course there's on one. He left...he not coming back.' _

_'You don't know that,' _Magneto's fragment offered.

_'He said he had to leave, because the Professor was almost in range.'_

_'No. _You_ said that. You speculated. _He _said he had an appointment to keep. Then you guessed. He neither corrected or supported that guess. You haven't the slightest idea why he left. Nor can you calm to know whether he will return or not.'_

_'He did support it. He called me his 'utterly brilliant girl'.'_

_'Because you are.'_

_'No, I'm not,' _she insisted. _'But what he said it _implied _that I was right,' _she said as she walked into her room. She went over to her bed and saw her shoes on the floor.

_'Perhaps that is what he required you to think,'_ he said as she sat down on the bed to put her boots on. _'It's possible that he altered his excuses as you altered you suspicions.' _

_'What about the other two spheres? He altered the amount of metal he brought after I altered how many people he had with him?' _she asked sarcastically as stood up to leave the room.

_'He left the chess set, didn't he?'_ She stopped by the door, and looked down at the chess board. _'He clearly brought it with him. Leaving it behind didn't effect his departure.' _She marched out of the room, and slammed the door behind her. _'Do you find it out of his character to be prepared for the situation?'_

_'No,' _she said as she walked down the stairs. _'Then why two more spheres? Why not one or three?' _

_'I suppose two spheres was meant to confuse you further. Perhaps only three because of a lack of metal.' _

_'Why was that answer wrong when I said it, but a valid argument when you say it?' _she asked annoyed as she walked out of the institute.

_'Because I put far more thought into my conclusion.' _She sighed.

_'There's a chance that he had a telepath here.'_

_'A very small chance.'_

_'I swear that woman sounded just like Emma.'_

_'Your brother's girlfriend? Is she a mutant?' _he asked.

_'Well, Victor approves of their relationship. So, it's either that or she rich,' _Rogue thought as she walked towards everyone. They were all playing baseball. _'At least they were detracted by something fun.'_

_'So, were you,'_ Eric said. She sighed as she pushed him to the back of her mind. She walked over to where Mr. McCoy was standing.

"Ah, Rogue. How nice of you to grace us with your presence?"

"Sorry, Mr. McCoy. I've been having a pretty bad week. Is the Professor back yet?"

"No, he hasn't returned." Rogue sighed as she sat down on the ground.

_'The Professor gone,' _she thought.

_'That proves nothing,' _Eric said.

"Do you know when he's getting back?" she asked.

"He has a few errands to run today. I believe he said he wouldn't be home for several hours."

"Hours..." she repeated softy.

_'That proves even less,' _Eric said.

_'Maybe while driving from one place to another he was within his psych range,' _Rogue guessed.

_'If that is the case, my dear,'_ Eric started.

_'Then the Professor could've drove out of range again, and Magneto could come back,' _she thought in fear.

"I most certainly could," Magneto whispered in her ear as his hand went to her waist.

"Rogue, out of curiosity. How did you know the Professor was gone? You've been asleep all day?" She looked up at him dumbstruck. She opened her mouth to speak

"Careful, my girl. Not one of these fools you entrust yourself to can see me. One word from you telling them otherwise, they will forget you were outside, and we will resume this conversation elsewhere."

"I...he told me last night that he was going out," she said quickly. "We're suppose to talk when he gets back.... I thought he might be back."

"Rogue, are you alright?" Mr. McCoy asked with concern.

"I'm fine," she said abruptly. She took a deep breath. "Like I said it's been a bad week, and I really need to talk to him, but I'm just gonna have to wait."

"Are you-" Mr. McCoy started to ask.

"I'm sure, thanks for asking," she said with a forced smile.

"Do you want to play? I'm sure your teammates would appreciate the help." Mr. McCoy said as the three of them looked at the field. Scott was covered in a mountain of Jamies on first base. Jean was lifting several up at one time, as Kitty was fazing through trying to find the ball. Kurt was in between home and third base dodging Ray's and Jubilee's firepower while trying to teleport anyone who got near home base. Evan was in the outfield shooting spikes at Ray and Jubilee. Despite their efforts all three of them crossed home base. Putting the new mutants in the led.

"Your answer should be obvious, Anna," Eric said in her ear. His grip on her waist tightened.

"No thanks, Mr. McCoy. I'm not feeling too well. I'd rather just sit here and watch."

"Alright, but if you change your mind."

"I know," she nodded with another forced grin. He smiled at her.

"Alright, Cannonball you're up at bat," Mr. McCoy said as he walked over to the new mutants.

"You're a convincing liar, Rogue."

"Tha-"

"If you wish to speak to me than _think it_. I am the _only_ one they can't see or hear."

_'Thanks,' _she thought sarcastically. She started to turn her head to look at him.

"Keep looking forward. Your suppose to be watching the game, Anna. Not the thin air behind you." She faced the field again.

_'Before was I talking to the fragment or you?' _she asked.

"You were speaking to me."

_'Did you even leave?' _she yelled in her mind.

"Yes, for a few minutes."

_'Why?'_

"I'd rather you didn't know." She sighed.

_'You're not gonna answer any question that matters are you?'_

"It depends on the question. I _might_ humor you."_'Not that it matters. I can't trust anything you say,'_

_"Is that a fact?"_

_'Yes, you said if I won at chess you would answer my question. I did and I asked one. Then you did everything you could to avoid it.' _

"If I answered your question now would you trust me more?"

_'Yes,'_ she thought. He paused.

"You're lying," he said with a laugh. "You're only saying it would help to convince me to tell you what I know." He kissed the back of her neck. She tensed and melted at the same time. "My manipulative little Rogue," he said tenderly.

_'I'm not your anything,'_ she thought strongly as she leaned forward.

"Oh? Aren't you?" he asked as he pulled her against him. He put his lips very close to her ear. "You see, my girl, over the past three days I've grown to like you. Much more than I should, and I am not the only one who harbors feelings for the other," he said as his hand slid under her shirt.

_'I don't,'_ she insisted as her hands went to his arm.

"Can you, honestly, deny your flushed face?" he asked as his bare hand covered her breast. "Your difficulty breathing?" His thumb brushed over her nipple. She gasped. "That sound you just made?"

_'Please stop,'_ she begged him. His hand slipped back to her waist. She took many deep breaths trying to calm herself.

"Why now are you against my advantages? You weren't earlier." She didn't think anything. "Is it the setting? We can go back to your room."

_'No,'_ she thought quickly. He paused.

"So, that's what it is?'

_'What?'_ she asked nervously.

"How did I not see it before?" he asked himself.

_'WHAT?'_ she yelled anxiously. He sighed.

"Of all the emotions I have tried to inspirer, I was trying to avoid this one. It's counterproductive to my aims." He felt his hand leave her side. He stood up. She started to turn. "Face forward, Anna," he said firmly as he sat down on her right side.

_'What emotion?'_ she asked as she looked over at him out of the corner of her eye.

"Fear."

_'I'm not afraid of you,'_ she insisted.

"You're not? Perfect, then I needn't worry."

_'Why would you worry? You like it when people fear you. It gives you the advantage.' _

"I have enough of an advantage over you, my dear. Surly you've realized this by now," he said as he turned to look at her. She slowly nodded. "But this argument is superfluous. Let us move on."

_'You've been trying to scare me since you got to the institute this morning,'_ _she thought not letting the topic die_

_"Perhaps," he said turning his head towards the game._

_'But you don't want me to fear you?' _she asked a she turned to look at him. Just as she turned a beam of red kinetic energy hit Magneto full on in the chest. Before she could think or say anything, Kurt teleported her to the other side of the field.

"Rogue, are you okay?" Jean asked.

"Yeah, I'll be fine. I thought ya all couldn't see him."

"We can't." Scott said. "You looked at him."

"How did you even know?" she asked.

"You looked scared." Jean said. "I could feel it. It looked like you were talking to someone."

"She said something to me, and we put it together," Scott said.

"I'm surprised he let you," Rogue said as she looked around the field.

"What is going on?" Mr. McCoy asked as he ran up to the group.

"Well," Jean started to explain.

"Rogue?" Scott asked concerned.

"I can't see him anymore," she said panicked.

"That, like, doesn't sound good." Kitty said.

"Can't see who?" Hank asked.

"Sorry, Mr. McCoy. There's no time to explain. Kurt, teleport Rogue as far away from here as possible. Everyone else stand together," Scott commanded.

"Scott, I can't just ran away and leave ya all in danger," Rogue said.

"Rogue, you're the one he's after. When you leave he leaves, and you're not running away. You're going to find the Professor," Scott said.

"Okay," Rogue said with a nod. She looked at Hank. "Mr. McCoy do you know where the Professor went?" Rogue asked.

"No, I'm sorry," he said as he shook his head.

"It's alright. We will find him even if I have to teleport a thousand times," Kurt said as she reached out for Rogue's hand.

"You are not going anywhere," Magneto said as he grabbed her hand before Kurt could. He pulled her up against him as he quickly lifted them both into the air.

"Let me go," Rogue demanded.

"From this height? I wasn't aware you had a death wish." She looked down to realize just how high they were. "But if you insist," he said as his arm left her waist. She wrapped her arms around his neck quickly to keep from falling. He smirked he put his hands gently on her waist.

"Are you insane?" she yelled in his face. "If I had fell-"

"My girl, do you honestly think I would have let you fall?" he asked as he stared into her eyes. "Do you sincerely believe I would have let you been injured?" he asked tenderly.

"No…" she said replied softy.f

"You will always be safe in my arms, Anna," he told her gently. "No harm can come to you in my presences." She blinked and looked away from him. She took a deep breath.

"Eric?" she asked.

"Yes, Rogue?" She gazed back up at him.

"Would you define the word harm for me? Cause I think we're using two different definitions." He chuckled.

"Anna. You're being-"

"I'm not being anything," she yelled. "You've kidnapped me four times."

"Three times," he corrected. "Our conversation outside of the school does not count. You sat down of your own volition."

"I was gonna home two days ago," she said in disbelief. "I was never gonna go to the café. You made me." she screamed.

"I didn't respect you then," he told her calmly.

"And you do now?" she yelled.

"Yes, and that respect keeps growing with each and every word that comes out of your mouth."

"Respect this, Jackass," she said as she let go of his neck. She slipped out of his hold and towards the ground fast. She closed her eyes waiting for something to happen. She felt his arm around her waist holding her close to him, yet again. She opened her eyes and stared up at him.

"I told you I wouldn't let you fall," he said with a smirk.

"I know you wouldn't. That's why I did it," she yelled as she pulled on his hands, trying to get them off of her. "Let me go, already. We're low enough." He chuckled as landed on the ground. The second he released her, she back away from him. Putting distance between them. She looked around and saw her various people looking for her. "Why can't I hear them?" she asked quickly in a panic.

"Their cries are a futile distraction," he said. Rogue ran up to Kitty. The girl was sitting on the floor, crying. Anna watched her scream Rogue with little hope of getting a response.

"Kitty, I'm right here. I'm okay," Rogue said as tears formed in her eyes. She tried to put her hand on Kitty's shoulder but it hand went through her.

"She can't hear you, Anna," Magneto said from behind her. "None of them can." She turned around to face him.

"Eric, please. Stop this," she begged. He walked up to her.

"Not yet," he informed her as he wiped away the tears from her eyes. "Despite my efforts, you haven't realized the point of all this," he said his hand went to her cheek.

"Then tell me. I'm listening."

"No, you won't believe it unless you've come to the realization yourself." Behind Eric she could see Kurt teleporting around trying to find her. He was near the point of exhaustion. She looked up at Magneto.

"I'll believe you, I promise," she tried to assure him.

"You can not guarantee that, Anna. You don't trust me. This mistrust is justified, I'll admit. No. In order for this to have the effect I need, you will have to discover the truth on your own."

"Eric, please," she implored as she put her hand on his arm.

"The longer you object the more time this will take." She saw Kurt fall to ground unconscious.

"Fine," she said softy in defeat. She looked up at him. "What do you want me to do?" she asked bitterly.

"There are several points that I need you grasp before I leave today. Truths you need to uncover and accept as fact. Charles has tried his best to lie to you all about the first truth. He's told this lie to you all so many times I think the fool may even believe it himself."

"What truth?" she asked.

"Look at your family, Rogue."

"I have been," she yelled.

"Running about the grounds searching for someone they have no hope of finding," he continued ignoring her outburst.

"They don't know what I do," she said.

"You gave them the hint they needed. What was it you said? Ah, yes. 'I'm surprised he let you.' With all the information available, you would think that either Mr. Summers, or Ms. Gray would have pieced it together. Instead, they run around mindlessly."

"It's not their fault," she insisted.

"Of course not. It's Charles'"

"Why? Because his not here?" she asked. He sighed.

"Would you care to try again, Rogue? Same rules as before."

"Try what again?" she asked.

"Escaping," he said as he lifted his hand off her cheek and moved it towards her eyes.

"What are you doing?" she asked as she grabbed his hand before he could move it any higher.

"Giving you a second chance, my dear. I was going to save you the trouble but if you insist on being difficult, then do it yourself."

"Do what myself?" she asked.

"Close your eyes," he commanded.

"Why?" she demanded.

"You will see once you have done it."

"Or I won't see anything cause my eyes are gonna be closed," she said annoyed. He chuckled.

"You will learn why as soon as you do so."

"That's not good enough. I need more than that."

"Rogue, I promise you that closing your eyes will in no way hurt you or the ones you care about."

"I don't believe you," she said.

"Understandably so," he said. He sighed. "My dear, what choice do you have?"

"What choice?" she yelled. "I can either give up, or fight you. I'm gonna fight you, Eric, with everything I've got, until I can't fight anymore," she told him strongly. He smiled at her. His eyes stared into hers with pride.

"And I will give you that chance to battle me, to escape."

"You're gonna let me leave?" she asked in disbelief. He chuckled. "What?" she asked annoyed.

"Keep that question in mind while you're trying to flee. Now, close your eyes." She started to shake her head. "Just this once Anna, trust me. Considering what little of it you have in me I would be a fool to do anything other than I what I promised."

"What exactly are you promising?" she asked.

"A chance to escape," he repeated. "Now, shut your eyes."

"Why are you asking me to? This grip ain't keeping you from doing it yourself," she said as she applied pressure on her hold of his hand.

"Of course it's not," he said with a smile as he took her hand in his.

"Then why? You could just make me."

"I could make you do many things. I choice not to."

"Why?" she asked.

"You know why," he said annoyed. "In fact, you knew the answers to the last four questions you asked… Anna… are you stalling?" he asked with a raised eyebrow.

"No," she said quickly. He continued to look at her curiously. "… Okay… Yes, I'm stalling," she admitted.

"You know this going to happen eventually. Why bother?"

"I…I have no idea… Something in me's telling me I don't want this to happen."

"Interesting."

"What is?"

"You'll find out soon enough," he said as his other hand went around her waist. He pulled her up against him. He stared into her eyes searching. "Dammit," he said softy.

"What's wrong?" she asked tensely.

"You truly are afraid of me."

"No I'm not," she said quietly.

"You honestly believe you don't fear me?"

"Yes."

"Then close your eyes."

"Just because I ain't afraid of you doesn't mean I can't be afraid of what you might do."

"Perhaps, but you're still stalling," he informed her, " and I grow weary of this argument, my dear. We'll save it for another time," he said as he leaned in.

"What are you-" she was interrupted by his lips making contact with her. Instinctively her eyes closed.

_'FUCK,'_ she thought as he broke the kiss. His hands left her body. She quickly opened her eyes to find that she was standing alone in between the institute and the fields. "Eric," she called out. No response. "This ain't funny," she called out. Still nothing. _'Now what?'_ She turned towards the institute. The metal plates used to protect the mansion came out covering the front door. "Guess I'm going to the fields," she said out loud to Magneto. Not that she could see him, but she knew he was there, somewhere. She sighed. 'He's probably standing right next to me,' she thought as she rolled her eye and walked over to the fields. She saw all of the X-Men playing baseball as they were earlier.'What the hell is going on?

"Ah, Rogue. How nice of you to grace us with your presence?"

"Hi, Mr. McCoy." She said as she walked over to him.

"Rogue, are you alright?" She looked at him blankly for a moment.

_'No I'm not alright… Why not?'_ she asked herself. "It's Magneto he's here at the institute and." A hand went over her eyes.

"Rule number one, if you alert anyone to my presences, they will forget the conversation, you will have to start over again." Magneto said in her ear. She pulled at his hand until he let go. She was once again standing in between the field and institute alone. She walked over to the field.

"Ah, Rogue. How nice of you to grace us with your presence?"

"Sorry, Mr, McCoy. I've been having a pretty bad week," she said repeating the line she had said to him the first time she had this conversation. She sat down again, in the same spot she had before._ 'Okay, I can't tell them anything, But I can still try and escape. Every car we have is made out of metal.'_ she sighed. _'Maybe If I can call the Professor. Get him back to the institute. If he's here then Eric might have to leave,'_ she thought. "Mr. McCoy?"

"Yes, Rogue?"

"Does the Professor have a com-link on him, or anything like that?"

"I don't know. Rogue?" he asked with a raised eyebrow. "How did you even know that the Professor was gone? You've been asleep all day.".

_'I already lied to him once,'_ she thought with a sigh. "He told me last night. I'm suppose to talk to him today. I thought maybe we could get a few things out of the way as he's driving from one place to another. Do you have a com-link I can use?" she asked.

"Yes, right here," he said as he took it out of his pocket. She stood up to take it from him. Just as he was about to hand it her he paused. "What happened to your?"

"It broke two days ago," she said. _'How am I gonna explain?'_ she asked her self. _'I don't have too,'_ she thought. "That's one of the things I need to talk to the Professor about," she said with a smile. He smiled back as he handed the com-link to her.

"You can keep that one if that's helps. I have another in my office," he explained.

"Thanks, Mr. McCoy," she said as she walked away from him and the fields. "Professor?" she asked into the com-link.

"No, Charles left his commutator in his office before leaving this morning. I'll be happy to take a message if you like," Magneto's voice replied smugly from the com-link. She rolled her eyes.

"Right?" she laughed. "Cause you'd actually deliver my message?"

"I might."

"Alright, take this down. Dear, Professor X. I'm being held captive by an egoistical bastard, hell bent on driving me insane. For some reason, despite the fact that Magneto's the only one we really fight, an alarming amount of our security system, and transportation is made out of metal. So, I can't leave. If you could get back here to mentally kick his ass I'd really appreciate it. Sincerely Rogue," she finished. "So, you'll pass that message along for me?" she asked sarcastically.

"Not a chance," Eric said while laughing.

"No shit," she said with a small smile.

"Rogue? How can Magneto be holding you captive? You're standing right here," Mr. McCoy said running up to her.

_'Why me?'_ she herself as she waited for the whole thing to start again. Nothing happened.

"Rogue?" Hank asked concerned.

"I'm still talking to you," she said happily.

"Of course you are," Mr. McCoy said. "Why wouldn't you be?" he asked confused.

"What is the second rule, Anna?" Eric asked.

"Magneto?" Hank asked in shock.

"They can find out about you being here," she said into the com-link. "I just can't tell them intentionally," Rogue guessed.

"Correct," Eric said.

"Okay" Rogue said. "Okay I can do this," she told herself. She looked up at Hank. "Mr. McCoy, do you know if their a phone in the car that the Professor took?"

"Rogue?"

"Please, I need to know. Is there a phone in the Professor's car?"

"I don't believe there is." She sighed.

"Far be it for the worlds most powerful telepath to worry about means of communication," Eric said though the com-link.

"Magneto, what game do you think you're playing?"

"He has thought of one," Rogue whispered to herself.

"And what means would that be, my dear?" Magneto asked, completely ignoring Hank. Rogue ran out onto the fields.

"Rogue, where in the middle of a game." Even screamed at her.

"This is important," she yelled back as she ran up to Jean. "I need a favor."

"Rogue, what's wrong?" Scott asked.

"A lot, but I can't tell you any of it," Rogue said.

"Magneto is some-how holding her captive?" Hank yelled out for the sidelines. Rogue smiled.

_'This could work,'_ Rogue thought with a grin. "Jean, can you use Cerebro?"

"Not as well as the Professor."

"But you can use it?" Jean nodded. "I need to get a message out to the Professor. Telling him to get back here. Can you do that?" Rogue asked.

"Yes, I..I think so," Jean said.

"Kurt could you teleport us?" He nodded as he put his hands on both their shoulders. They teleported. The next thing she knew she was standing in between the fields and the institute. "What?" Rogue asked in disbelief.

"Rule number three. No X-Men allowed in the mansion. Not counting you of course, Anna," he said though the com-link.

"How am I suppose to do this then?" she asked in frustration.

"You know how_."_

_'Yeah I do,' _she thought as put the com-link in her pocket and ran towards the fields.

"Ah, Rogue how nice of you..." She ran past him onto the fields.

"Rogue, we're in the middle of a game," Even screamed in protest. She ignored them both as she ran up to Jean.

"Jean, I can't explain why, but I need to borrow a dose of your power."

"Rogue, what's this all about?" Scott asked.

"I can't explain. I can't tell you anything. Just please," she said while looking at Jean. "Let me borrow your powers and maybe I can make it right."

"Why can't I just use my powers?" Jean asked.

"I already tried that. He wouldn't let you."

"Who wouldn't let me?" Jean asked confused. Rogue looked at Scott.

"Who do you think?" Rogue asked.

"Magneto?" Scott asked. Rogue didn't answer him in fear that Eric would count it as telling. She faced Jean again.

"Please, let me borrow your powers."

"But.."

"Jean, you should let her. Magneto been trying to recruit Rogue, and he's telepathic," Scott explained.

"Maybe not," Rogue said.

"What? But yesterday?"

"I'm not sure. I not sure about anything right now," Rogue said.

"You need Jeans powers to fight him?" Scott asked. Rogue nodded.

"To call the Professor," Rogue said. She looked Jean in the eyes. "Please."

"Okay," Jean said as Rogue took off her glove.

"Scott, be ready to catch her in case she faints." He nodded. Rogue touched Jean's face. She fell into Scott's arms as Rogue disconnected. "She should be alright. It'll take her a few minutes to recover. Thank her for me when she wakes up," she asked Scott as she put her glove back on.

"Yeah, no problem." Scott asked as he lowered Jean to the ground. Rogue took a second to throw up a mental shield just as the Professor had shown Jean countless times.

_'Now, the bastard can't read my mind,'_ she though in triumph.

"Rogue?" Scott asked.

"I have to go. I need to do this while I have Jeans powers.

"We can help you, Rogue," Kurt said.

"He won't let you. He wants to keep this between me and him. I'll tell you everything later I promise." Scott nodded.

"Good luck," Scott said.

"Thanks," she said as she started to run towards the institute._ 'I'm gonna need it.'_ She used Jean's powers to open the doors as she ran into the institute. She ran to the elevator and pressed the button. Nothing happened. 'What?' she thought.

"Rogue?" she heard Eric voice coming for the com-link in her pocket. "What is the elevator made out of?" She rolled her eyes, as she used Jean's powers to force the door open. She flew down the shaft and onto the top of the lift. She found the panel the opened into the elevator. Just as she was about to open it the lift started to shake.

_'That can't be good,'_ she thought. She quickly tried to force the panel loose. It wouldn't open. The shaking became violent as the elevator started to ascend. Rogue flew as fast as she could up the tunnel. She panicked as she saw the door to the first floor slowly start to close as she was flying. She rushed to get out. She slipped though the small crack still open just as the door was about to close. She kept moving forward but was pulled back. Her shirt was caught in the door._ 'Come on,'_ she yelled as she tried to pull her shirt out. The material ripped as she pulled it. She sighed as she took the shirt off and threw it to the ground. She sat on the floor in front of the elevator as she caught her breath. The elevator door opened. She looked up to see Magneto causally leaning against the back wall facing her.

"Going down?" he asked with a smirk.

"Not with you. Not in that thing," she told him.

"It's the only way to the Cerebro."

"No it's not," she informed him.

"What question did I ask you to keep in mind before?"

"Are you gonna let me leave?" she repeated. "That's the only way your going to let me go to the subbasement, isn't it?" she asked irritated. He smirked.

"As usual, you quickly drew the correct conclusion, with the minimal amount of information," he said with a smile.

"It's deductive reasoning. It's not that hard to understand," she said.

"Do you know how few people your age actually know what the term deductive reasoning means? And of those who do, how few of them could use it with the confidences you just did?"

"Not every person is an idiot."

"No, just most of them." She stood up. "So? Will you decend or stay here?" he asked.

"If I go down, am I allowed to come back up?"

"An excellent question. Yes," he answered with a nod. She stepped into the elevator and stood next to him. The lift started to move. She watched as the doors closed putting her in a position she had promised herself she would avoid if she had a choice.

_'Right, because, I'm going to get into that large metal cage with you,'_ she replayed her own words from yesterday.

She sighed.

_'What's changed since yesterday?'_ she asked herself.

"Quite a lot." he answered. She looked up at him.

_'You just read my mind,'_ she thought.

"Indeed."

"Jean's powers are gone," she realized panicked.

"Are they? I hadn't noticed," he said smugly.

"I wanna go back up," she demanded.

"No," he said dryly.

"You said I could go back," she screamed.

"I did, but I don't remember picking out a specific time, do you?" he asked condescendingly. She screamed in frustration as she let herself fall to the floor. She folded her arms over knees. The door opened. "After you, my dear."

And that's it for today. I hope you all liked this chapter. Please review! It's how I know if people are reading! Speaking of which.

RogueNya: Hi, Thank you for reading, and reviewing again! I glad the last chapter got you 'a bit hot under the collar.' It's good to know I'm not the only turned on by this stuff. I also happy you liked the game, and yeah Rogue got mad when she remembered that he hadn't answered him. Although she was a bit more disappointed than mad. Anyway I'm really happy you're enjoying my story. I hope you loved this chapter and I can't wait to hear from you again.

Eris R. Lebeau: Hi again! Thank you for reading and reviewing again! Seriously, I love everything that you write! You just write complement after complement and go in depth about what I'm doing with the characters, and you're right, and you're AWESOME! And you guess things. Things I wasn't going to reveal for several chapters! I give the slightest hint. The smallest hint I could give, and you got it. Was it the word 'posh,' in last chapter that gave it away? Or is it when you think of a telepath that would work for Magneto she the one who comes to mind? I'm just curious.

Again, thank you for all of the complements and I hope you loved what Mags did next. I can't wait to hear what else you have to say. ^.^

Sinner-Pandemonium: Thank you for reading, and for the story alert! I hope you liked this chapter.

Darkness-Lightness: Thank you for reading and for both reviews! I really glad you're enjoying my story. Oh, and thanks for calling my writing brilliant, twice! That made me really happy. I hope you loved this chapter and I can't wait to read anything else you have to say

Jewell: Thank you for the 'Awesome!' and for reading and writing that review. I hope you loved this chapter and I can't wait to see anything else you have to say.

Ereska: Thank you for reading and for the story alert!

Ares1234: Thank you for reading and adding my fic to your favorite story list. I hope you liked this chapter!

And to all the people who put this story on their Story alert and are still reading it, thank you!


	6. Chapter 6

Hello everyone! Sorry I took so long to update. I was going through some writers block. Plus I'm back in school. So, all that free time I used to have to write has gone back to H.W, and Ultimate Frisbee.

However, I found out something ridiculously awesome. This site gives it writers info on how many people have read their stories. Including how many people read each chapter, and even what countries people are from. I can't put names to anything. They're only numbers, but it is so COOL!!!!!!

People from the U.K, Germany, Canada, Argentina, Russia, Norway, Belgium, Greece, Ecuador, Switzerland, and so many more are reading this story. That is so awesome!

I thought that fifty, maybe seventy people tops, were reading this. No, I was wrong! In January 382 different people read my story!!!!!!!!!

HOLY CRAP!

Yeah, so that writers block I was feeling last week…it's gone. After finding that out, I had to get back to writing, and a few days later, here we are. ^.^

Enjoy

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Six

Rogue sat in the elevator unmoved. She could see the open door, and his hand gesturing towards the subbasement. And of course she could hear his voice telling her over and over again that he wanted her to get out of the lift. But at this point she didn't want to do a damn thing he said. She didn't want to play games, or run around the mansion anymore. She definitely didn't want to talk to him.

She just wanted to sit, and relax. Maybe think, if she could have privately.

"Anna? I need you to stand _now_," Eric said with his voice slightly elevated. He had been saying that and similar phrases for almost fifteen minutes now. She just sat there ignoring him, not saying or thinking anything. With a sigh she tilted her head to the right so she could see past him, out into the subbasement. "Anna?" he asked looking down at her curiously. He spun around to glance at whatever it was that she was looking at. He saw nothing of importance. She was peering with discontent at the door to Cerebo. "What are gawking at, girl?" he asked as he turned back around to look down at her probingly. Resentment filled her. She stared up at him with rage in her eyes, and was met by his ever composed gaze. She wanted to stand up and hurt him. Make him feel some type of pain…anything would do.

'_Like I could,' _she thought bitterly as she turned her eyes to the wall. She heard him groan exasperated.

"Will she ever stand again?" he asked no one in particular.

"Perhaps," she whispered.

"'Sometime today would be nice,'" he quoted smugly. Her hands balled into fists, but she stopped herself from trying to punch him.

'_Just calm down, girl. You did the same thing to him earlier. He's using the same exact tactic, _fucking copycat_.' _She took a deep breath. '_He's just getting revenge,'_ she told herself as she took a few more took deep breaths. _'I won't give him the satisfaction,'_ she though empowered as she relax herself.

"Anna?" he asked. She went back to ignoring him. "Anna Marie," he yelled. She sighed unmoved. "Despite the impression I may have given you, my dear. I do not have all day to just _stand_ here."

"You'd have all the time in the world if we were having _sex_," she huffed.

"Are you offering?" he asked intrigued. She sighed yet again.

"You're a bastard," she said calmly from her spot on the floor.

"Maybe so, but I'm _your _bastard." She looked up at him surprised. "Shall we?" he asked, holding his hand out to her. She stared at it uncertainly for a moment.

'_He can't really think that we're…,' _she let her thought trailed off as she took his hand. "What do you mean by that?" she asked as he helped her to her feet. His hand slipped out of hers, capturing her glove. He let it fall to the floor.

"That I'm your?" he asked as he took hold of her bare hand, and put his other hand on her hip.

"Yes," she said as she tentatively gazed into his eyes.

"Relationships are at there best, my dear, when those involved correspond to one another. Wouldn't you agree?" he asked.

"Yes," she said again much softer than she had but a moment before. His hand slipped underneath the fabric of her shirt. His bare hand rested gently on the small of her back.

"I call you my girl, because you are _mine_."

"Eric-" she started to protest.

"Anna, you may _berate_ me as much as you please, _after_ I have said my peace." She reluctantly nodded. "Thank you." He paused. "I call myself your bastard," he said with a smirk, she smiled, "because I most certainly am one, and at late I find myself quite infatuated with _you_," he said as he brought her hand to mouth and kissed it. She sucked in a breath as she put her other hand on his arm, unintentionally stepping closer to him. He leered. "There are many other activates that I am meant to be engaged in at this moment, yet despite my numerous responsibilities I find myself spending more and more time with you, Anna Marie." His hands left hers and rested on her cheek. "Do you have any idea what measures I had to take to ensure this meeting?" She put her hand on his wrist.

"There are a few ideas running in my head."

"I know there are," he said as he brought their faces closer together, almost touching. "And one of them is _correct_, my exquisite strategist," he whispered as his lips brushed against hers.

"I'm not a strategist," she insisted softy as her eyelids fluttered. "Not like you."

"I bed to differ," he said before he lightly kissed her. "You evaluate a given situation swiftly, and contemplate every logical possibility I would realistically consider," he said as he backed her against the wall. "Then you, my girl," he said with lust in his voice, "you assess your part in our dealings, what I will and won't allow you do. You work within these boundaries."

"You don't give me much of a choice, E-Eric," she said her breathing becoming uneven. Her hand painfully grasping his wrist.

"You manipulate what little freedom I permit, to your benefit. The other day when you left through the book shelf, you closed it behind you. You used another book to do this. Giving yourself a few more seconds of times to run, my clever Rogue," he said as his other hand explored her body.

"Anyone could've come up with that," she gasped as her eyes closed.

"Perhaps," he murmured as his hand slid to her neck. He tilted her head back. "but how many could control their thoughts the way you did?" he uttered. She felt his hot breath on her neck. "How many could have realized I was suspicious of their behavior, and instantly fathom a means to diminish that doubt, without mentally planning a thing? It was as though you acted on pure instinct. If that mental feat does not qualify you as a strategist, then no one of worthy of the title."

"Is that what changed your mind?" she panted.

"Yes," he said as he kissed her neck. She moaned. "That is how you gained my _respect_," he said as the zipper on her pants lowered. She felt it. Her eyes quickly flew open.

"Eric," she protested weakly.

"Trust me," he urged gently.

"Trust _you_?" she asked in disbelief. He chuckled darkly as he kissed her hard. His hand returned to her flushed cheek as he broke the kiss. His lust-filled eyes bore into hers.

"Just this once, Anna," he said breathlessly.

"Give in?" she asked softly.

"To something we both desperately crave." They stared into each other heated gaze.

"If we…if we do this… that doesn't mean I'm gonna join you."

"At the moment, my dear, that is not what I'm after." She stared at him for a few more moments before she came to a decision.

"I'm gonna regret this," she murmured.

"No, you won't," he promised as he kissed her. She tore her lips from his and looked him in the eye.

"If I change my mind-"

"Do not insult me by finishing that sentence," he said firmly. She rolled her eyes as she wrapped her arms around his neck. She took off her other glove, and dropped it to the floor.

"Can you really blame me for making sure I have _control_?" she asked looking up at him, anticipation and fear behind her eyes.

"No," he uttered as the door to the elevator closed, and started to ascend.

"Where are we going?" she asked nervously.

"Where do you think?" he asked with a smirk. The lift stopped and it's door flew open. They were on the second floor. He bent down and scooped up her legs. He kissed her. She returned it as she pulled herself closer to his him. He carried her out of the elevator and down the hall towards her bed room door. The door swiftly swung open slamming against the wall. They both heard a woman scream. She broke the kiss, and looked up at him confused.

"Eric, where are all the X-Men?" Rogue asked slightly out of breath.

"Outside," he said bitterly.

"Then who screamed?" she asked.

"My telepath," he said.

"Your _telepath_," she repeated. He lowered her feet to the ground and walked up to the door. She started to follow him. Eric turned to look at her again.

"Wait here," he commanded as he marched into the room. "You've had over two hours, why isn't it done yet?" she heard Magneto scream.

'_Why isn't what done?' _she thought as she walked up to the door. It slammed in her face. She could hear a woman whispering something, but she couldn't make out what she said.

"Of course you should," Eric said irritated. "Now, can she hear either of you?" he asked. He paused as thought he was waiting for a reply. "Good. Finish this within the hour. Do I make myself clear?" he paused again. "I am aware of that," he yelled. "When?" he asked slightly calmed. He paused. "Wonderful," he said sarcastically. He paused again. "Contact me once the opportunity presents itself," he ordered as he opened the door, to find Rogue blocking his path.

"What are they doing in my room?" she asked as she tried to see past him.

"You don't even know who _they_ are," he said frustrated as he moved his body when needed to block her line of sight.

"I didn't say I did, like you'd _tell _me. Thought I ask something you might answer." He sighed.

"I'm afraid I can't answer that either," he said as he put his hands on her shoulder, and gently pushed her back.

"Can't?" she asked with a smirk. He chuckled as the door closed behind him.

"Won't," he said with a grin. She looked at her door again. There was no way he was allowing her inside. She sighed.

"So, where do you wanna go now?" she asked.

"That depends entirely on what you would like to do," he said as his hands ran up and down her arms. She glanced at him, and then her door. His hand slid up to her neck. He brought their lips closer together.

"I changed my mind," she informed him.

"Another time perhaps," he said with a sigh as he released her. He started to walk down the hall.

"Where are you going?" she asked.

"Follow me and you'll find out," he said smugly as he continued down the hall.

"What if I don't?" she asked out of curiosity.

"You would simply stand here until Charles returned?" he asked with a laugh. "A rather monotonous choice of activity, Anna.

"You'd let me?" she asked. He stopped walking. A moment later he turned to look at her.

"Yes, yes I would," he promised her.

"How long until he gets back?"

"I haven't decided," he told her truthfully.

"_You_ haven't decided? How are you keeping him away?" she asked. He smirked.

"Well," he said as he turned again, and continued to walk, " you see, my dear, keeping Charles away isn't nearly as difficult as you would think," he whispered as he ambled out of hearing range. She rolled her eyes.

"Eric," she screamed as she watched him walk. She could tell he was still talking, but he was making sure that she couldn't hear him from where she was standing. _'Manipulating ass,' _she yelled in her head. She rolled her eyes as she realized her zipper was still undone. She zipped it up and with a sigh she ran through the hallway, and down the stairs to catch up with him.

"And as you gather from that rather _detailed _description I just gave, Charles will not be able to return to the Institute until I allow it. Now, my dear, you can never claim that I am completely unwilling to answer you questions. That particular piece of information was extremely valuable. It took a considerable amount of planning. A work of strategical genius."

"I didn't hear the explanation, Eric," she said annoyed.

"Really?" he asked sarcastically with a smirk. "A pity."

"Would you repeat it?" she asked. _'Jackass,' _she thought as she walked along side him into the kitchen.

"Anna, you do realize I'm still reading your mind?" he asked as he opened up on of the pantries.

"Yeah," she sighed as she went to find something to eat.

"Go and sit, I'll cook," he told her. She walked away from the pantry, towards the seats.

"Okay," she said with a small smile as she took a seat on one of the stools. "I was wondering about something," she said.

"Yes?" he asked as he continued to search.

"Do you mean _you're_ reading my mind or you're having some telepath link them so it seems like you're reading my mind?" she asked

"Is there really a difference? Either way I can read your every thought, despite the means I use," he said as he opened a few more pantries. "Is there nothing to eat in this kitchen?" he asked incredulity.

"We're going to the store _tomorrow_. If only you'd _waited_ a day to take over the place there'd be _penalty_ of food for you to steal," she said sarcastically. "And it would matter if you had someone making it look like you were a telepath, rather than actually _being_ one. If someone could separate you from your minions then they could defeat you," she said. "There's cereal in the pantry to your left, " she informed him.

"That plan would be feasible only _if_ you knew just how many _minions_ I have and what they are capable of," he said with a smile, "which I doubt Charles can make such a claim." He opened the cabinet she was referring to. "I refuse to eat _Coco-Puffs_," he said in disgust.

"I don't. Could you hand them to me?" she asked. In respond the cabinet door slammed close. "Eric, come on. I haven't eaten anything today," she complained.

"You'll eat soon, I promise," he said as he stood up and took out his phone.

"Do you enjoy Asian cuisine?" he asked.

"I guess," she said as she eyed the phone in his hand. "You're gonna _order_ food?" she laughed in disbelief.

"In a matter of speaking," he said with a leer. "Are there any dishes you would prefer?"

"I haven't really had much of anything. Kitty made me try meso soup once, but I didn't like it."

"Not surprising. Meso soup is very bland. Quite the opposite to your tastes, my dear. Allow me to select a few items I believe you'll enjoy."

"Okay," she said staggered. Just as he was about to open the phone, it started to ring.

"Perfect timing," he said with a smile. "Excuse me for a moment," he said as he headed for the door.

"Like I have a choice," she murmured derisively. He sat down on the stool next to her.

"Anna, you are the _only_ person, besides myself, who I allow to _make_ decisions. I have only manipulated the circumstances you find yourself in. Not you, my dear. All the others, the X-Men, my assistants. They are either being manipulated by, or against their will. But you, my girl, the choices you make here today are your own. Your reactions are your own. You have a _choice, _my dear. As you always will be when you are within my company." She turned to face him.

"Why is that so important to you?" she asked amazed. "What do you care if I think you're truth worthy or not?" she asked. "Because you want me to join you? I get the first attempt. You saw I could be useful to you, and you used my weaknesses against me. And then the second time we talked, you tired to convince me that my family didn't care, and that you did. So, I'd leave with you, but it didn't work," she recapped. "I don't get why you're _still _trying. I said no. I'm not gonna say yes. I'm not," she insisted. She sighed as she looked away from him. "What's so special about me anyway? I'm sure you have dozens of mutants who can do what I can." His hands gripped her shoulders.

"Let me make this perfectly clear. You are not to be debased. Especially, by your own hand," he said firmly.

"You _debase_ me all the time," she yelled up at him.

"And you in turn insult me. I consider it a game we play with one another. Both attempting to discover the other's breaking point. Thus far, I have not been disappointed," he said with a smile. "What is so _special_ about _you_?" he asked astonished. "My dear, what could possibly be considered unexceptional?" She gazed into his eyes searching.

"I'm angry all the time," she claimed

"Because of the fragments, the nightmares," he justified. "Your hardship has lessened over time. It will continue to do so as you gain control over your abilities," he promised.

"I'm anti-social," she repeated her school councilor's words.

"We both know that's not true. You do not participate in mundane conversations. Much like myself, you do not see the reason for pointless chats. The aim to most conversations is to learn more about the person you talking to. You, my dear, know almost everything about the people you consort with on a everyday basis. Either because of your powers or your keen sense of observation. What else?" he asked.

"I…"

"You can't think of anything else at the moment, can you?" he asked with a smirk.

"Eric, I have faults," she told him as she stared into his eyes. She recognized the look in his eyes. She had seen it before. It was more then lust, or curiosity. He had given that look to only one other woman. "Are…are you _in love _with me?" she asked breathlessly. He paused, a look of contemplation on his face. He ran his hands up and down her arms, while looking into her eyes. She stared up at him waiting for an answer. He leaned in and kissed her. She closed her eyes as she leaned into him. They had kissed so many times, now. It seemed so natural to her, the feeling of his lips on hers. He broke it a few moments later, as he sat back in his seat. "Eric?" she asked. He sighed as he brushed her hair behind her ear tenderly.

"Yes, yes I am," he answered finally.

"How?… I mean, I know how… It's been less then a week." she said flabbergasted.

"We spoken more than just these few days, my dear. Surly, you must have suspected."

"Suspected what?" she asked. '_The_ _only times I've talked to him before was…Oh God,' _she thought. "The fragment?" she asked horrified.

"Indeed," he said confirming her fears.

"How often was I talking to you?" she asked startled. His phone rang again. "Was it _always_ you?" she asked panicked.

"I will answer those questions and more after I have secured the next few hours of this conversation," he said as he freed her arms.

"Hours?" she asked.

"Unless, you are willing to join me now?" he asked.

"I…I…" she started to say as she quickly shook her head no.

"Shh," he said as his hand cupped her cheek, stopping her moments. "Calm yourself, my girl." He kissed her forehead. Her eyes closed. "Take this time to collect your thoughts," he said. A moment later she felt his hand leave her face. She opened her eyes to see him answering his phone several feet away from her. "I understand there is a time limit to this venture. I was a bit preoccupied," he said. He opened the door, just as he was about to step through it he turned back to look at her. "When I return I expect a long list of well thought out questions. Aimed to penetrate the very core of my resolve," he said with a smirk as he left her alone.

And that's it for now!!!!!! I hope everyone liked it! Please review people. If you have questions, or comments. Unlike some person in this story I can't read your mind, so review, and I shall act accordingly. With replies to your reviews

Speaking of which…

Archmagus: I'm glad you like the last chapter. I hope you weren't too confused. The point of the last chapter was to confuse Rogue, so I hope you were feeling her confusion, rather than not being able to decipher what I was writing. Let me know.

As for the Tom and Jerry comment you made. I love the comparison! I'm glad you're enjoying my story. I hope you love this chapter. Can't wait to hear what else you have to say.

PrincessKitty-Chan: I LOST THE GAME!!!!!!

You are awesome! I love you forever, and ever and ever and ever and ever, and always. Please like this chapter, ^.^

Oh man, maybe you'll write a review without me sitting next to you. How weird would that be? I'll see you this weekend, my friend.

Sinner-Pandemonium: Hi! Thank you for reviewing. Sorry, I almost made you cry. Not my intention. This whole day feels like it should be one really, really long chapter. But I have to break it off at some point so you guys can read in a timely manner.

Thank you for the complements. I glad it draws you in. That was my intention. Anyway I hope this chapter did the same thing. Can't wait to hear from you again.

Eris R. Lebeau: Hi again. Yeah after I realized that most of chapter five was in italics I was back and put up the chapter again. So I corrected those few mistakes you saw. And I'm totally going to use that suggestion you gave about reading the story backwards. Thanks!

Again with the complements! I am at a lose for words. Probably doesn't help that I've been staring at this computer for the last three hours finishing this chapter. Oh, I agree completely with your views on Emma. I love her for the same reasons!

Anyway, I am really happy that you're enjoying this story. And I can't wait to see what you have to say about this chapter.

Darkness-Lightness: Awww. I'm sorry I took so long to update. I had the writer's block. But then I read your review and it reminded me of myself about fours years ago doing the exact same thing. Again, sorry I took so long. I hope it was worth the wait. Let me know! ^.^

And to those who put this on the story alert, and are still reading, THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

And to everyone who just reading, THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!!!

Peace


	7. Chapter 7

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Seven

_Rogue entered her room, dressed in PJ's, after a very, very long day. With a sigh she let herself fall on the bed._

'_Going to sleep, Anna?' Eric asked._

'_I want to,' she sighed. _

'_Then close your eyes,' he told her._

'_I can't,' she exclaimed '... I can't let you do that anymore...help me fall asleep and all… Take the nightmares away... The Professor-'_

'_Charles is an idiot, with no sense of what you actually _need_. He's reaction was-'_

'_Completely_ justified_,' she finished. 'Eric, I'm seventeen, and you're... you're _older.._.A lot older. We can't...,' Rogue ran her hand across her cheek, as Eric had done so many times before. "I don't want to give it up," she whispered. _

'_Then don't,' he said strongly. She shook her head, fighting back the urge to cry, trying to keep her eyes open._

'_I can... I can get over this," she said determined as she sat up. 'I'm just used to it is all. I can get over that.'_

'_You shouldn't have to, Anna,' he said firmly. '...If _you_ feel that what we have done in the past is wrong, then, and only then, will I be willing to accept your decision to end it. However, I sincerely doubt that is the case.... One_ _look of disapproval from him and you cease all of our activities. Why?'_

'_He's right,' she thought sadly._

'_From a certain point of view, yes, he is correct. But from the opinion of another, namely the two individuals actually involved in this relationship, what we have done, what I still wish to continue is as right, and pure as any other interaction.'_

'_What we have is _not_ pure,' she told him with a short laugh._

'_I seem to remember a young woman embracing another for the first time in over a year.'_

'_That's how it started... then I...,' her eyes stun from the drops of waters that refused to remind hidden. She closed them to gain relief._

_She quickly reopened them to find Eric sitting next to her. She glanced up at him with disapproval._

"_You kissed me," he said tenderly as he reached for her hand. She moved away from him._

"_I can't," she shouted yet again, turning away from him. His hand found hers. _

"_If you are so concerned with his _opinion_, then I will concede." She tried to remove her hand from his, he wouldn't let her go. "My dear, what could Charles find unseemly with _holding hands_?" he asked her in disbelief. She gazed up into his eyes. "Unless his grievance is with the _person_ you have selected and not the act itself." _

_She sighed as she let her hand relax in his. He took the opportunity to interlink his fingers with hers._

"_I should've never started this," she thought dismally. "Would've been better not knowing."_

"_Knowing?" he asked with an eyebrow raised. "Because of the fragments, the memories you have-" _

"_I know," she shouted quickly, "...I've experienced it myself." She sighed. "I know I have. It's just... it's been from someone_ else's_ point of view. I knew that it had never happened to me, that it _couldn't_ happen to me. I knew that _I _couldn't feel this, not really ... but now, after everything we've done...It hurts so much more," she said as she wiped tears away. "... More than it ever did before... I mean, I can only have _this," _she said as she looked down at their hands_," _in my dreams...What kind of _relationship_ is that?" she asked in anger. She felt Eric's hand gently cup her chin. He turned her face to look at him._

"_It's a good start," he told her._

"_To what?" she asked softy. He opened his mouth to say something, only to close it again. "What could we have, Eric?" He continued to gaze at her, saying nothing. _

_A minute passed in silence. _

"_Answer me," she screamed, tears still running down her face. _

* * *

Rogue gasped as she left the memories of her and Magneto's past conversation, unwilling to rewatch the rest of what had transpired that night. She grabbed onto the kitchen counter in front of her to keep from falling off of the stool. She took several deep breaths.

"My dear, are you alright?" she heard Eric ask, his hand came to rest on her shoulder, rubbing softly. Closing her eyes, she let herself take comfort in his gentle caress.

She had, no idea how long he had been standing there, how many minutes had passed since he had finished his phones calls and returned to the kitchen. The concept of time was lost to her while she viewed past events.

Another deep breath, and then she finally gazed up at him. She noted the look of concern on his face. She moved her elbows onto the table. Resting her face in her hands, she continued to regain her composure. His other hand moved to the back of her neck, massaging her tense skin softly.

'_Get it together,' _she reprimanded_. 'Reliving hasn't taken this much out of me since...'_

"Since you confronted your mother's past," Eric finished. She opened her eyes ready to glare at him, but he was now standing behind her. Never the less, her eyes narrowed with contempt.

'_You shouldn't know that,' _she thought in frustration, not bothering to speak out loud.

"Why not precisely?" he asked. She didn't respond. He sighed as one of the cabinets opened up. She watched a glass float out towards the sink. It filled with water, and proceeded to move in her direction until it was in front of her. "A drink usually helps, does it not, Anna?" he asked.

'_Yeah, it does.'_ She snatched the glass off of the counter and took a few sips. She placed the half empty glass back onto the counter. "That's something else you shouldn't know," she said, her voice finally returned to her.

"Yet, I do," he said his hand still rubbing, all the while, "and there is nothing you can do to change that fact. You can only-"

"Adapt to the situation," she finished in a whisper.

"That's my girl," he said kissing the top of her head.

"I'm not yours," she said biting her bottom lip. She heard him sigh.

"We have already had this argument today."

"We didn't finish. You distracted me with something else, like you always do. You used touch to change the conversation." She closed her eyes, enjoying the feeling of his hands on her shoulders for a few more seconds before she stood up. She quickly walked several feet away from him. "Not any more. I'm not letting you," she said as she turned around to face him. He stared over at her, a satisfied smile on his face. "You're happy about this?"

"You're adapting, Anna," he said taking a step towards her. She took a step back. "Modifying your behavior to suit the conditions I have forced upon you." A look of surprise crossed her face. "Yes, I'll admit that I have altered your life," he said reading into her expression. "You would not be standing in this kitchen this morning if I did not come. You would still be asleep-"

"You're doing it again," she said interrupting him, "changing the subject. I'm not yours," she repeated strongly.

"Anna, at this moment this discussion is pointless," he tried to assure her as he walked towards her again. She matched his movements, keeping at least ten feet between them. "We hold our views at opposite extremes. Neither of us will persuade to adopt their point of view, certainly not today. Perhaps at a later date-"

"When, I'm more ceceptable to the idea?" she asked in disbelief. She released she was nearing the wall. She turned quickly, pulling the table between them. He sighed as he continued to move towards her, around the table.

"You release how inane our current stances are?" he asked as she kept pace with him, the two of them circling the table.

"Yes, " she answered, "but what else I'm I suppose to do? Give in? _Let _you manipulate me?"

He didn't answer. Instead he walked closer to the table. She backed away from it, from him. She imagined him tossing the table to the side, marching up to her, as they both knew he could. To her surprise he calmly pulled out one of the chairs, and sat down. He motioned to the chair parallel to his. She eyed the chair in front of her with uncertainty, it was made of metal.

'_Everything in this damn house of made of metal," _she thought in frustration, deciding to stand.

"And you ask me why I insult Charles so often. If the man had any sense he-"

"All of our defenses in the front aren't made of any type of metal. He never expected you be able to break in so easily. He thought it was safe to have normal furniture."

"Do _you_ think it safe for there to be so much metal in this house?"

"_Obviously_, no. I don't think it's safe to not have a _telepath_ here, cause then you can…" she let her voice trial off, her mind wandering. "You _were_ the fragment... in my mind... you were able to overlap it somehow for all those months," she thought out loud, "I had conversations with you while he was in the room, and he didn't know." She looked up at him. "Why didn't he know?" she asked.

"Why wasn't the worlds most powerful telepath aware that I was in his home, that I was in your mind? The answer is simple, my dear. He was not aware because I did not _allow_ him to be." Her eyes widened at the realization. "Earlier I said that there were truths I wished for you to understand. Use that billiant memory of your. What were my _exact_ words?"

She searched through her memories, easliy able to replay what had happen only hours before. Her body shook slightly when she realized it was only because Magneto that she was able to do this. Without him she would still have no control over her powers.

"There are- there are several points that I need you grasp before I leave today," she said slowly. "Truths you need to uncover and accept as fact... Charles has tried his best to lie to you all about the first truth. He's told this lie to you all so many times I think the... the fool may even believe it himself."

"What truth, Anna?" he asked. She shook her head.

"I don't- I don't know."

"Yes, you do," he said frimly. "You've said the most important word yourself, mere moments ago." She played the conversation over again in her mind. One word stood out among the others.

"Safe?" she repeated looking up at him. He nodded.

"Do you feel safe at the Xavier Institute?"

She looked away from him again. Her mind racing, comtemplating the past few months. After everything that has happened to her. How much of it was Magneto's fault; the kidnappings, operation rebirth, the fragment. He had been there that whole time. In her mind; talking to her, molding her, using her. She glanced up the doors, the windows, all useless to her, unless he allowed it. She felt more like a prisoner at that moment than she had all day.

Did she feel safe?

"No," she whispered in defeat, softly shaking her head.

"Is _Charles_ capable of _protecting_ his X-Men?"

"Not from you," she murmured as she hugged herself. He nodded again as the chair in front of her moved out slightly.

"Have a seat, my girl. I will not harm you," he promised. She glanced at the chair again, and took a deep breath.

"I'm cold," she said suddenly. "I wanna go get a sweater," she said keeping herself from looking at him, from thinking anything.

"No, you want time to think, time away from me," he said. She refused to look at him. She heard the door to the kitchen open. She looked over at it. "Do not try to leave the mansion. Other than that, go where you like. I'll come find you when the food arrives. Understood?" he asked. She nodded hastily. "Then go." She didn't need to be told twice. She ran out of the room.

* * *

So that's it for this chapter. I know it's short but I figured it been over a month since I updated, rather than write the next part in this chapter, I figuered I would post what I have and start the next chapter with Rogue's thoughts.

I'll start working on it tonight and maybe get that done sometime tomorrow. I'm not promising anything, but I have the whole day free. It's just a matter of finding a computer to work on. I had walk around my campus for an hour before I found a classroom that wasn't locked. :(

But here I am and I just spent the last four hours writing this chapter. WHOO!

So, yeah Reviewing!!!!! Please do it! I like hearing from you all.

Usually, I respond to each review personally, but it's almost 9pm and I'm hungry. So, for this chapter, and this chapter only, I will forgo my personal responses.

Next chapter will be back to normal, promise. I might end up responded to chapter six reviews along side chapter seven.

For the record, THANK YOU ALL FOR READING!!!!!!!!!!

and for pulling up with my bad updating :p


	8. Chapter 8

06/25/11

Hey, I was rereading the chapter and I noticed the community error with the time-line.

Remember when I said I _wasn't_ going to do this? :p

Oh yeah: I going big brother on this fic!

* * *

Anyway, there is one change I made for this chapter. Every time I had Rogue repeat a one liner from the past I had to write a sentence explaining she was quoting Eric, which got very annoying, very fast. So, to make my life easier, and less irritating, flashbacks are now in **Bold**.

Please review!

Hope you all enjoy!

* * *

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Eight

Rogue ran up the stairs as fast as she could, trying to put as much space between her and Magneto as possible.

'_As much as he'll allow,'_ she thought sadly. The realization of just how close he had been all these months was almost too much for her to handle. She felt like a coward running from him, knowing there was nowhere to go, no one to run to. But what else was she supposed to do? She didn't want to be in the same room as him. Not now.

She stopped herself halfway down the hall. Letting herself collapse on one of the red chairs that lined the walls, she closed her eyes, trying once again to catch her breath.

That seemed to be all she was doing today. Run, calm down, talk, run again, calm down again, and again and again. She was getting tired or it. It was too much. Too much in one day. Why couldn't he just take the hint, and leave? Why couldn't he give her the time she needed to process?

'_Cause he's an _ass_,'_ she thought with a sigh. '_He's always been an ass, since the beginning…'_ She was finding it difficult to think about Eric now. In the past she had thought about him in two different respects. There was the fragment in her mind, the man who had taught her how to use her mental powers, and so much more. She almost loved that man.

He had been helping her from the moment he had entered her mind: quieting the fragments, showing her how to use her powers, teaching her how to think, ultimately how to control the other fragments in her mind. She still had a lot of work to do, in that respect, but they were making progress. And then there were her dreams. '_Were they dreams?'_ she questioned. All those nights spent in each other's arms. She and Eric had bonded, emotionally. '_Physically...'_

She took another deep breath.

Then there was Magneto: the man who scared her, who was trying to seduce her, who had taken her captive several times without a second thought, who wanted her by his side, '_By any means…'_

She had been trying to keep the two of them apart in her mind. Treating them like two separate beings. She attempted not to think about the fragment when she was with the real Magneto. She was afraid of mixing the two up, of treating the real Magneto like the fragment. '_Not that it matters,' _she thought sadly. '_They're the same person... oh god they're the same person,'_ she repeated as her breath quickened. She had told herself that at least twenty times by now, but it still hadn't sunk in. She was still gasping what that really meant, the consequences of his actions. '_It was- it was always him, or mostly him?'_ she questioned. She inhaled deeply. '_It was him,'_ she though more firmly. '_They're the same. Same memories, same…'_

"_**And because of my sources I now know**_ **everything** _**about you."**_

'_His source was _me_,' _she thought in disgust. 'I _told him everything he would ever want to know about me… about _everyone_,' _she realized. '_Magneto knows _everything _I do,' _she cried. '_What am I- how am I supposed to fight him? He's…'_

"_**We talk until one of us changes the other's mind."**_

'_Okay...okay... breathe...'_ she told herself as tears ran down her face. '_Get up… cover up and… and get him to _go away_,' _she thought determined. '_I gotta wait for the Professor to get back, and explain everything to him... All of it…' _Another deep breath. '… _I can do this.' _

'_But what if he won't leave?'_ The pessimist in her asked. She closed her eyes, water drops once again falling free. '_Then it don't matter what I do… I'm_ fucked…' She let her head hit the back of the chair. '_Why do I feel so _helpless_?' _she asked herself.

'_Because you are,' _the fragment of Magneto answered. She took yet another deep breath.

"Get back with the others," she said firmly, "Or come up here and _talk_ to me. I'm not doing putting up with this bullshit anymore. I wanna know _who_ I'm talking to…"

She sighed in relief as she felt him fade into the back of her mind.

'…_Get it together, girl... You're _stronger _than this... You can handle this. You can handle _him_.' _She wiped the remaining drops of water off of her face, as she inhaled.

With new found determination she got to her feet, made her way down the hallway and into her room. Closing the door behind her she walked up to her dresser and pulled out a black, long sleeves shirt. '_I'm gonna be hot,' _she thought with a sigh, '_but it'll be worth it.'_ She pulled it over her head.

Next she opened the draw she kept her gloves in. One look inside, and she quickly slammed it closed again. Her other pairs were missing, again. '_This is getting old,'_ she thought frustrated as she headed for the exit. As she was opening the door her eyes lingered on the wall. '_What the...'_ she thought as closed the door and walked up closer to the wall. She let an image from earlier that day appear in her mind. Her fingers touched the wall. '_The holes were... they were right here,'_ she thought confused as her fingers slid over the unbroken wall.

'_**You've had over two hours, why isn't it done yet?' **_

'_I wonder which lackey was put on construction duty,' _she thought with a smile as she continued to run her fingers over the wall. '_Whoever it was, they did a good job. If I didn't know that there had been a hole here a couple of hours ago I'd never…,'_ she gasped. '_I'd never know,'_ she finished slowly. Her mind played over the day again, all those conversations with her friends, they never remembered any of them. '_Or maybe they never happened..._ _How much of today's been real?'_ she asked herself, fear started to creep up on her, for the countless time.

She heard a knock at the door. She sucked in a breath, knowing who was there, knowing it couldn't be anyone else. She didn't respond.

"Anna?" Magneto asked. She took a deep breath.

"Come… come in," she yelled. She glanced over at the door as it opened. Magneto looked over at her with a smile on his face.

"Our dinner is here," he informed her. "Shall we?" he asked as he walked over to her. His eyes lingered over her clothed arms. She saw him frown slightly as his eyes ran across her arm, and onto her figures on the wall "So, you noticed what _they_ were doing?" he said with a smirk as his gaze traveled to her face. "Anna, are you alright?" he asked, with concern in his voice.

"No," she said dryly_. 'Ask him,'_ she thought strongly.

"Ask me what?" She looked up at him.

"How… Did- did you put a hole in my wall earlier?"

"Yes," he answered bewildered. "You watched me do so." A soft smile graced his face. "It certainly wasn't my finest display of sportsmanship," he said humorously, glancing down at her. She almost smiled back.

'_Focus,'_ she reproved. He raised an eyebrow.

"On what, precisely?"

"Did I talk to my friends? When I was trying to escape did I talk to them?" He continued to give her a puzzled look. "I mean the _real_ X-Men, and not some _illusion_."

"Now, I see," he said with a nod as he stepped closer to her. "Yes, you spoke with your teammates. Anna," he started to say as he took her chin in his hand, and tilted it up slightly, "I _have_ order minds to be alters. Certain memories have been created, others erased. But I promise you, my girl, that not one of them was _your_," he said decisively.

"I don't think I believe you," she said, shaking her head out of his gasp. She took a few steps back.

"Given all that you know about me, you're very wise not to. However, I hope in time that you will learn to trust me again," he said with a kind smile as he stepped towards her. Despite the strong urge to, she did not back up further.

"Stop doing that," she demanded.

"Stop doing what?" he asked as he took another stride forward.

"_That_," she exclaimed, "trying to get close to me. _Stop_ trying to _touch_ me."

"Anna-"

"I _know_ you enjoy it. I- I like it to, but I can'-" she stopped herself from completing that sentence, knowing he wouldn't accept that excuse. "I'm telling you not to... Eric, I'm saying _no_," she said firmly. To her surprise he ceased his movement.

"Are you _certain_ that is what you desire?" he asked her.

"I'm- I'm sure," she said while nodding.

"Very well," he sighed, "you have my word. I will not touch you until I have regained your permission." With slow movements he made his way back to the door. "Come," he said as he opened the door for her. "Let us go eat." She quickly marched out, and started to walk down the hall. She heard the door close from behind her. "So? Is there anything else you would like to ask me?" he questioned as he made his way to her side, keeping a safe distance of three feet between them.

"I… yeah…"

"Well?" he pressed as they went down the stairs.

"Give me a minute," she yelled. "I didn't have time to think everything through."

"We'll discuss it together then," he said as he stepped in front of her as they neared the kitchen. He once again held the door open for her.

"What? Are you going for world's most _polite_ capture or something?" she asked as she went through the open door.

"Or something," he murmured walking to the table; he pulled out the same chair he had asked her sit in earlier. "Have a seat." She gave him a questioning look as she sat down.

"Hmm, what are we eating?" she asked, noticing a lack of food on the table. She was startled when he pushed in her chair.

"One moment," he said. She felt his grip leave the chair, and heard him back away. She turned to look at him. He bent down, behind the stools and other table, out of her sight.

"What are you doing?" she asked as she tried to move the chair out an inch, to get a better view. To her dismay it wouldn't move.

"I suspected that collecting you might take a few moments. I put the food in the oven, "he explained as he stood up again. A covered platter floated near his head. She watched it fly, and land on the table.

"Smells good," she commented. "Pasta?" she asked in confusion as she recognized the scent of tomato sauce, and Italian spices.

"Unfortunately, the restaurant I was going to order from was closed today. They've been open for business all this week. Open at eleven am _last night_, but today. Today, for some reason they were closed." She could hear the disappointment in his voice.

"You're talking like you've been planning this meal for _weeks_," she said with a short laugh.

"I have," he said bluntly as he walked over to the table, plates and silverware in hand. He let them drop to the table with a thump.

"That doesn't make any sense," she told him gently. "The café-"

"You believe your motives were _unknown_ to me," he said irritated as he moved his hand slightly. "I knew you would only go to the café to gain my knowledge." Out of the corner of her eye she saw two glasses, on metal coasters, flying towards the table. "I was aware that you would say _no_ in the end," he said, the word 'no' leaving his tongue as through it was the vilest statement he had ever had to utter.

The glasses flew and started to descend. However, he used more force than he should have: the glass that landed in front of her shattered. Tiny pieces of glass started to fly towards her face. He quickly pushed her seat back several feet, keeping her from being harmed. He stood up taking the mental coaster out from under his glass; he stretched it over his hand, and started to clear the broken glass. She heard a cabinet open, and soon saw the garbage bin floating in her direction. She looked in front of her and saw the many pieces of glass that now littered the floor. If he hadn't moved the chair in time, many of those pieces would be in her.

She took a moment to calm herself, and then.

"Eric?" she asked softly, calling for his attention. He glanced down at her. "Would you do me a favor?"

"I haven't completed _enough _favors for you _already_? You wish for _more_ from me?" he yelled as he threw most of the glass out in the garbage bin.

"What favors? You taught me how to use my powers, and I'm _grateful_, but it's not like you gained _nothing_," she rebuked. "You were in my mind. You know everything I know about my family: their strengths, _weakness_. I mean, come on. It's no wonder Cerebro can't find you, you helped _install_ the last three _updates_."

"Your point, Anna?" he asked as he knelt down in front of her chair. "I didn't hear a request in that statement," he said as he continued to clean up the broken glass.

"You didn't get the food you wanted. I made you promise not to touch me. You're mad because things aren't going like you planned."

"Thank you, Miss Creed, for the _wonderful_ synopsis of the past _ten minutes_," he said as he glared up at her. She met his angered gaze, and refused to back down.

"Slamming plates, breaking cups?" she asked incredulously as she watched him stand. She got to her feet and turned to look at him. "Eric, I'm seventeen and-"

"I am aware of your age, Rogue," he yelled as he threw the remaining fragments of glass in the bin.

"Eric, you may _berate_ me as much as you please, _after_ I've said my peace," she said using his words from earlier that day. He marched up to her.

"Do you have any idea how exasperating it is to have your own words spat back at you every other moment?" he screamed.

"Do you have any idea how exasperating it to have your _freedom_ taking away from you?" she scolded. He backed away from her slightly. She watched his eyes, they seemed distance. He was remembering. "We both know you _do_… You know what it feels like to have everything you ever known taken from you… I'll admit that what you're putting me through its completely different from what happened to you as a child. In a lot ways it's better. You're not gonna kill my family. You'll keep me from seeing them, by you ain't gonna take them away forever, and I _appreciate_ that. But in one way- in one way what you did to me is a hell of lot _worse_."

She watched his eyes narrow in anger, disapproval, but he made no move to stop her from continuing.

"For three months I talked to you, learned from you. I cared- … I care about you," she admitted. Her eyes focused on his arm, as he lifted them up. It looked like he was going to reach out and touch her, but he merely crossed his arms over his chest. She sighed in relief as she looked back up at him, trying to remember her point. "You've been holding me captive since I absorbed you in New York. You've just, finally, had the _decency_ to tell me about it... The Nazi's were up front with you. You knew where you stood. It was the worse situation a person can be in, but at least you never had to play guessing games. And they _never _asked you to _care_ about them. _That's_ what's worse."

"You still haven't told me what you want from me. You were asking for a favor." He sounded much calmer now.

"I want you to _leave_, but I know you ain't gonna do that," she said in defeat as she looked away from him.

"Anna?" he asked tenderly.

She sighed, recalling what she wanted from him, at that moment. She folded her arms across her chest as she glared up at him. Her eyes narrowed in anger as she asked, "Feel like _breaking_ anything else?"

"No," he said slowly. "I believe I've destroyed enough of Charles' objects for one day."

"Then let's _eat_, I'm starving," she said as she moved passed him, grabbed her chair, and moved it back up to the table. He went to one of the cabinets. Opening it, he quickly retrieved another glass. She walked over to the refrigerator. "What do you wanna drink?" she asked as she opened the door.

"I believe there is ice tea," he told her, he sounded surprised by the question. Recognizing the blue pitcher, she pulled in out, and closed the door with her free hand. She made her way back to the table. He met her there, another glass in hand. He gently placed the glass in front of her, and she poured them both a drink. He moved to the other side of the table as he used his powers to remove the top on the platter. Steam rapidly rose as he started to put food on her plate. She retook her seat, as he placed a plate full of penne pasta in front of her. She looked over at the table. The forks where out of her reach, near him.

He noticed her eyes lingering on the silverware, as he filled his plate. The fork lifted in the air, and slowly floated towards her. She reached out and claimed it.

"Thank you," she mumbled, hastily looking down at her plate, before stabbing the penne with her fork.

"You're welcome," he uttered as he sat down and started to eat himself. Just after he had finished his first bite, he quickly stood up. She glanced up at him in confusion. "I almost forgot," he explained as he pushed his chair out and walked towards the microwave. "Do you enjoy garlic beard?" he asked from across the room.

"I've never had it," she answered as she saw him return to the table, a covered plate in hand. He put it in between them, next to the platter. He removed the cover to reveal several seasoned slices of bread. He retook his seat, as he grabbed one of the pieces. "I suggest dripping it in excess sauce," he said as he took his own advice and took a bite out of the bread. "The favors mesh together, flawlessly." She eyed the bread as she took another bite of the penne.

'_Why not?'_ she asked herself as she reached out and took a slice of bread. Taking his advice she dipped it into the sauce and took a small bite. "Mmmm, that is good," she said as she dipped the remaining bread into the sauce, and took a much bigger bite. As she chewed she felt sauce rolling down the side of her mouth. She quickly surveyed the table. '_No napkins?'_ she asked.

"I knew I had forgotten something, my apologizes," he said as he quickly dropped his fork onto his plate, and moved his hands to the arms of the chair.

"It's alright," she laughed as she wiped the sauce off of her chin. "There, no problem." He seemed so…serious. '_It's only a napkin,'_ she thought as she sucked the sauce off of her fingers. She watched him suck in a breath as his hand clenched the chair's arm. Her eyes widen as she realized. "I wasn't flir-"

"I know," he said instantly. "Where are the nap-"

"I'll get them," she said as she stood up, pushing her chair back, she swiftly made her way to the cabinet. "I really didn't mean to-"

"I _know_, Anna," he said before taking a large sip of his iced tea. She opened the small door. She grabbed the bag filled with napkins. Fumbling, she almost dropped them. She sighed at her own clumsiness, as she closed the cabinet's door. She walked back over to the table, tossed the bag next to the platter, and she retook her seat. Deciding she'd had enough bread, she picked up her fork again and started to eat. Her eyes were on her plate, she refused to look up at him. "Again, I must apologize... I did not intend to make this meal… awkward," he sighed.

"Whole days been awkward," she murmured before taking another bite.

"Search that memory of your. You know that is not true. There were… _moments_ when you and I overlapped in perfect harmony… In the elevator…" Her face flushed as images, feelings, from earlier popped into her head. With effort she pushed them away. "On your bed."

"Would you please stop doing that," she yelled as she looked up at him.

"_You_ started it," he said as he met her gaze.

"_I _started it? What are you five years old?" she reprimanded. "I said I didn't mean to do that. That was an accident..." she let her voice trail off as a memory, from a few weeks ago, replayed in her mind.

_**Rogue slowly lifted herself up onto her knees again. Her arms still resting on Eric's shoulders, she lightly pressed her lips to his. Her eyes closed as she tried to memorize everything about the feeling. A moment later she broke it.**_

"_**Can't do that in real life," she said sadly as she opened her eyes. She looked into his eyes. "Sorry," she whispered as she sat down on the bed. She turned her gaze away from his. He hand went to her chin; he turned her face to look at his.**_

"_**Don't be," he said kindly as he brought his face closer to hers. This time he kissed her.**_

"I kissed you first," she said glancing back up at him with wide eyes. "I _did_ start this… I- I didn't know it was _you_," she tried to justify.

"Should that have made any _difference_?" he asked frustrated. "You knew that night, when you kissed me, when you started this, that you were physically involving yourself with a man named Max Eisenhardt. What difference does it make if I was the man before you, or just a _fragment_ in your mind?"

"I-" she started to say. However, he refused to let her say a word, as his anger intensified.

"Allow me to enlighten you. Entering into a relationship with a _lowly_ fragment bares no _repercussions_. Unless, of course, the _great_ Charles Xavier discovers it. Then you must cease _all_ of our activities… You would not even _speak_ to me for two days," he yelled as he threw his fork down. He pulled his plate away.

"Not because of- you didn't answer my question," she screamed in aggravation. "You said what we had was a good start. I asked 'to what?' You _never_ answered me. We sat there for ten minutes. I was crying my eyes out and all you were doing was holding my hand. Giving me that _look_ that you knew something I didn't, and I couldn't figure out what it was. You were in my head, and I was supposed to know everything you knew, and you _wouldn't tell _me. I was mad," she screamed as she stood up. She moved her chair back a few inches and moved behind it. "That's why I wouldn't talk to you, not because of what the professor said."

"He was the catalyst," Eric insisted.

"Remember your second day in my head?" she asked as she placed both of her hand on the top of her chair, and leaned towards him. "A _paper clip_ was the catalyst to us screaming at each other." He sighed.

"Oh, yes, I remember that night. Not as well as you do but, never-the-less, I remember it. You would not stop going on and on about the damn danger room. Excuse after excuse for Charles' choices. It was beyond irritating."

"You want to know what's _irritating_? Trying to fall asleep, at eleven o'clock at night, and having a voice in the back of your head whisper, 'but, Anna, you have to understand,'" she said in her best imitation of him. "What I _understood_ was that I had to get up in seven hours, and fighting with you wasn't going to help any."

"If you did not _choose_ to participate in those morning sessions, then you would be able to awaken an hour and half later, and a good night's sleep would never had been in question." He stood up. "I was _trying_ to do you a _favor_."

"You could have let me sleep when I _wanted_ to," she said taking her hands off of the chair, folding them across her chest, "that would have worked."

"I am aware of that fact," he said as he marched around the table and towards her. "That is why I started to _help_ you fall asleep."

"You didn't start doing that for_ three weeks_," she said turning to face him. He now stood in front of her. "What the hell were you waiting for?" she screamed.

"I was not present in your mind _every_ evening. How could I aid you one night, and then forsake you another? How would I have explained it?"

"So, I had to live through weeks of _nightmares_ because you couldn't _explain _yourself?"

"You would have no _control_ what-so-ever if it were not for _my_ influence."

"You don't know that."

"You had resided here for over half a year before you absorbed me. You did not seek Charles help before. I highly doubt you would have requested assistance unless another force interceded."

"And that force just _had_ to be you?"

"Remind me, had anyone else _offered_ before I did?" he asked. She tore her gaze away from his, as tears fell down her face. She walked several feet away from him.

"…You bastard…," she whispered. "You _know_ no one else has. No one else could figure out how they work."

"No, Anna," he corrected. She heard him take a step towards her. "No one else took the _time_ to learn. I am the only one who has ever done _that_."

"The professor-"

"Charles started to look into your powers because he found out that you were _with-holding_ valuable information about me. Tell me," he said as he walked up to her side, "during how many of your conversation did he ask you about me?" he asked as he titled his head in her direction, hoping to catch her eye.

"…All of them," she said slowly. She glared up at him. "You were the only one I talked to: the only fragment that mattered. He had to ask."

"That may be, but did he have to ask you so many details about my bases?" She looked away from him again, refusing to respond. "How were the many conversations you and he had over the particulars of my _defense systems_ pertinent to _your _mental health?"

"You're only focusing on the bad things. That wasn't all we talked about."

"Then you learned things about your abilities that you did not other-wise know? You gained new-found knowledge during these discussions?"

"Yes, the first one."

"Of course, your first exchange, when you knew as little as he," he said dismissively. "And after that? After you started to learn from me, did he discover anything else?"

"…No," she said frustrated. "He didn't understand my powers well enough to help. I was teaching him."

"He was the _Professor_, and you, his pupil, were teaching _him_?" he asked in disbelief. "You were the one who was giving him information: either about yourself, or me. You defend his home, you teach him, and assist in the education of his other students. What precisely do you _gain _from this agreement other than a bed and two hot meals a day?"

"You think you can give me better?" she asked as she glared up at him again.

"You _know_ I can," he said firmly, as he stepped in front of her.

"They're my family. I love them, and I c- won't leave them. I won't _betray_ them," she cried. She eyed his hand in the air, as he brought it near her face.

"My girl, I wish to comfort you, and I believe you wish to be consoled. Give me your consent." Her eyes met his. "Please…" She stood there watching him for a moment. More tears ran down her face as she backed away from him.

"_You're_ the reason I'm crying, Eric," she said as she continued to back away from him. "You can't be cruel one minute and then considerate the next." She walked back over to the table, and sat in one of the seats.

"We have this conversation before. You know my reply. I say what I must to ensure that you see the truth."

Silent fell between. He was waiting for her to say something, and she was waiting for him to get away from her. He sighed.

"You say you will not betray them," he started to say, ending the silence as he used his powers to pull on the stool to him, "but I ask you what is there to betray?" She turned to glare at him. He sat down next to her, on the stool. "Mr. Summer? Surly you must know, my girl, his eyes are for Miss Gray alone."

"That doesn't mean we can't be friends," she snapped.

"Then, Miss. Pride. The friendship she shares with you is not unlike the ones she shares with many, if not _all_, of the other students in this house."

"So, she's friendly. Big deal," she shrugged.

"It makes you _replaceable_." Rogue closed her eyes as tears poured out.

"Please stop…" she whispered. She reopened her eyes, and glared up at him. "'No harm can come to you in my presence,'" she quoted one of his earlier statements. "No _physical_ harm is what you meant. But, _mental_? That's fair game, ain't it? You're just gonna keep fucking with me until I'm willing to anything you want… You say you can give me better. 'You will always be safe in my arms,'" she quoted him again. "What if I don't _want_ to be in your arms? What if I don't agree with you?" she shook her head. "No… My life here it may not be prefect… It's got its faults, but with my friends I know where I stand. We're _equals_. I wouldn't have that with you."

"Not at first," he said. She glared up at him again. "But over time, once I know I can trust you, I will share with you all I know. There will be no secrets between us. You will know everything that I have experienced. And all it will take," he said as he lifted his hand up as she eyed it, "is one touch," he said as he brought his hand closer to her face.

"I'm not giving you permission," she said firmly.

"Not yet," he said as his eyes met hers.

A moment later she tore her gaze away from his, deciding to glance at her half eaten meal.

"So, now what?" she asked. He sighed, as she watched him lower his hand out of the corner of her eye.

"Now we…" he started to say. She sat there for a moment waiting for him to continue.

Frustrated she turned to glare at him again and asked "Now we what?"

"You wish for me to leave," he stated.

"Yes," she said quickly.

"Is my company _that_ unbearable?" he asked angered.

"No," she said tenderly. The feelings she had for him creeping up on her, she couldn't help by sound kind. "I _like_ talking to you. You _know_ that… But not like this. Not when I don't have a choice. Not when you're doing god knows what to my family."

"They are still playing baseball," he informed her dryly.

"_Still?" _she asked astonished. "It's been _hours."_

"And there in lays one aspect of Charles' training I approve of. The danger room builds up his student's stamina to impressive levels. I honestly believe those children could endure for the rest of the night. Perhaps well into tomorrow before collapsing from exhaustion."

"Are you gonna make them collapse?" she asked worriedly. Not that there was anything she could do to help her family, but she wanted to know.

"That is for you to decide," he said.

She felt her chest tighten up. There was so much he wanted from her. So many things he could ask for in exchange for their safely.

"What do you want?" she whispered. He looked down at her again.

"I have _one_ condition, Anna. Understand that this is _not_ a negotiation. You will agree to my term, or today's conversation, and there session, will persist. Is that clear?"

"Yes," she sighed in defeat. She watched him stand up, the stool he was sitting on returned to its place by the counter-top. "Now, what is it?" she asked anxiously. He turned his back on her, as he walked over to the window. "Eric?" she exclaimed.

"When I leave today you will tell no one that I was here." She gasped.

"That's it?" she asked as she got to her feet.

"You were expecting some other condition?"

"Yeah, I thought- I thought you would make me go with you," she said hugging herself.

"I considered it," he said while turning his body, and neck slightly to look at her. "But you do not wish to leave with me?" She nodded as they made eye contact. "I will not force you," he promised. She could see the disappointment on his face, until he turned away. "However, you are aware of more than you should be. Things I do not want Charles to know about… not yet. I need to ensure your silence."

"What if…" she started to say, but she stopped herself from asking. She wasn't sure she wanted to know the answer to her question.

"My girl, you have never let fear limit your inquires before. Do not start now," he ordered firmly. She took a deep breath, burying her dread.

"What if I say no?" she finished.

"If you choose that… then when I depart for my next destination I will take you with me…. An option, I had wished to display as an _offer_, instead of a threat." He sighed. "But so be it. A _threat_ it will be." He turned back to face her "Do we have a deal?" he asked, holding his hand out for her to shake. She eyed his hand with uncertainly.

She had almost considered saying no. He friends could handle themselves, he would not kill any of them. Plus they were playing baseball, something fun. They were having fun while she was fighting for her freedom. For theirs too. But... she didn't want to go with him. He was giving her a choice, just not a very good one. With a sigh she took four stepped forward until she was close enough to reach his hand.

"Yeah, I won't say anything about today to anyone," she said as she took his hand. As she did he pulled her towards him. His lips descended onto hers. Wide eyed, she tried to pull back, but his hand had made its way to the back of her neck keeping her in place.

A moment later he finally released her. She recoiled several feet.

"I didn't give you permission," she screamed.

"You willingly took my hands. I assumed-"

"You assumed wrong," she yelled. "Don't do that again."

"Your reasoning to discontinue our contact was that I using it to control you. I'm _leaving_, Anna," he said as he took a step towards her, "_without_ you. What is there left to manipulate?" he asked as he another step forward.

"There's next time. You're not giving up."

"No, I'm not," he said as he stepped in front of her again. He lifted his hand up, nearing her face for the countless time. "May I?" he asked staring into her eyes. She didn't respond. Her face growing hot, with the way he was looking at her. "Would you deny that there is something between us?"

"No," she uttered. "I haven't denied anything...I shouldn't," she said as her eyes lingered over his lips. His hand was by her face, moving up and down like a caress, a few more inches and it would be. His other hand was by her waist. So, near, but not touching.

"You have," he insisted. "What's one more?" he asked. He wasn't even touching her, but still it felt so intimate.

"I don't- I don't wanna become dependent on you." He chuckled.

"My dear, You already are."

"No- no, I'm not," she insisted, shaking her head furiously. He smiled as he took a step back.

"Go and take your shower. I will be gone by the time you have finished," he said.

"I'm not," she exclaimed.

"We'll see tonight," he said.

"You said you were leaving," she replied in confusion.

"And I am," he said folding his arms across his chest. "Go, relax your body, the mind will follow. It will come to you."

"What will?" she asked.

"You will not know until you leave," he told her.

"But-"

"Go," he laughed. She inhaled deeply. Finally realizing that she was the one prolonging the conversation, she gasped.

'_Turn around,'_ she told herself as he face flushed with embarrassment. Her body listened as she turned to face the door and ran out of the room for a second time that day.

* * *

And that's it for this chapter! Longest one I've written in a while. Took forever!

Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed it! Please let me know if you did. Especially, let me know if you didn't and why. How else am I going to learn what works, and what's crap?

Speaking of reviews:

Darkness-Lightness: Hi! Sorry about the long wait. I hope it was worth it.

Halo666: Thank you for putting my fic on your favorite story list. Hope you're still reading!

BrennaM: Thank you for the story alert! Hope you liked this chapter.

RogueNya: Hey! Thanks for reading, and for the both awesome reviews. Hope you liked this chapter!

Jenny: Sis, I love you forever! Thank you for reading! Oh, call and let me know when you actually read this :)

Sinner-Pandemonium: Hi, again! Thank you for reading and for the both the reviews. I'm glad I made you dance!

Night Foliage: "I've been taken in by the mastery of your fanfic" You, my friend, know how to make someone feel that they're doing a good job! Thank you for the review, for reading, the story alert, and for being awesome! I look forward to hearing from you again.

Warrioroftheseventhstar and Zannen: Thank you both for the story alerts! I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter!

Forgotten Silver Angel: Hiya, new reader! Thanks for the story alert. I really glad that you're enjoying my fic. Thanks for calling it unique! I hope this chapter was to your likening.


	9. Chapter 9

* * *

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Nine

Rogue once again ran up the stairs away from him. Her breathing heavy, she raced to her room. Slamming the door behind her she let herself slid down to the ground. Taking deep breaths she attempted to calm down… again.

"_**Go and take your shower. I will be gone by the time you have finished."**_

Without thought Rogue stood up and made her way to the dresser. Her body on autopilot, she took out the clothes she would need and made her way into the bathroom. Closing the door behind her, she placed her clothes on the sink, and looked herself in the mirror.

Her face was still flushed from embarrassment, but her breathing was almost back to normal.

'_And he's leaving,'_ she thought with relief, _'…but for how long?'_ she asked herself anxiously. She closed her eyes as tears ran down her face, as she let her head tilt downwards. _'You don't know that he'll come back…' _She took a moment to considered her last thought before she sighed._ 'Who the fuck am I trying to kid? _Of course, _he's gonna come back... All that time he's spent with me already… he ain't done ye_t…'

Another deep breath.

'_There's nothing you can do about that,'_ she told herself. _'Ain't a damn thing you can do to stop him from coming and going.'_ She wiped tears off of her face as she looked up at her reflection. _'At least he ain't here now,' _she thought, realizing this was probably the first time in a week she was alone. _'So, enjoy it…_ ' she thought as she went to the shower and turned on the water.

"While it lasts…" she whispered.

* * *

Rogue took one last look at her self in the mirror before she headed for the bathroom door. During the shower, and even now, thoughts, and speculations were trying to make their way to the front of her mind. With effort she managed to keep her head clear, empty. She knew that she should be contemplating everything that had happened today, replaying the evens and trying to figure out as much about Magneto as she could, but she was too damn tired.

She just wanted to relax for a while. Was that so wrong?

It had been a long day. If she could manage to keep from having to endure any more mental strain, at least for the rest of the night, that would be great!

With her mind pleasantly blank Rogue stepped out of the bathroom.

"Gang way," Jubilee said as she rushed passed Rogue into the bathroom, slamming the door behind her.

'_Well, that was rude,'_ Rogue thought as she started to towel dry her hair.

A second later it hit her, and she let out a sigh.

'_They're back in the mansion,'_ she thought relieved. With that knowledge stored, she headed back to her room. Just as she was about to open her bedroom door, Kitty phased through it. Rogue gasped as he roommate popped in front of her with a handful of clothes.

"Whoa," Kitty exclaimed as she fell backwards into the room. Rogue quickly opened the door.

"You okay?" Rogue asked startled as she saw Kitty was halfway between their room, and the floor below it. Ignoring her, Kitty stood up, grabbed her garments from the floor, and ran passed Rogue out into the hallway.

"NO…" Kitty cried out. Confused Rogue followed Kitty out into the hall, only to stare at the closed bathroom door.

"What's wrong?" Rogue asked.

"I like totally missed the shower… Who's in there _now_?" she asked.

"Jubilee."

Kitty let out a groin of frustration as she proclaimed, "She takes the _longest _showers." Kitty walked back into their room, throwing her clothes on the edge of her bed. "I'm, like, never going to be clean again," she shouted as she collapsed onto her stomach, on the bed.

"She doesn't take that long. You'll be in and out within the hour," Rogue said in an attempt to cheer her up.

"I should, like, go wait outside the bathroom so I don't get skipped again," Kitty murmured through her pillow.

"There are others bathrooms," Rogue pointed out. "How many people have to take showers?"

"EVERYONE!" Kitty yelled as she raised her head to look at Rogue. "We've been playing baseball _forever_. It was fun but everybody's all icky now, and there are, like, _so_, not enough bathrooms to go around… You are so lucky you got to take one before everyone came in," she mumbled before she got up and collected her clothes.

"Yeah, I guess I am," she uttered; realizing Eric had done her a favor by putting the idea in her head. She shook her head as she pushed that thought away.

She was not indebted to Magneto in anyway. He had used her for information and. _'...I do not wanna think about any of this now,' _she reminded herself firmly. It was kind of hard not to think, when she was attempting to have a conversation._ 'Okay, new plain, get all your talking out of the way so you can come back up here and go to sleep... Guess I should start with...'_

"Hey, do you know if the Prof's back yet?" Rogue asked.

"Hmm, yeah," Kitty said as she made her way out the door. "He, like, just got back," Kitty said before she stopped walking. "Do you still have to talk about what happened with Magneto?" she asked forlorn as she turned to face Rogue.

"Yeah, I probably have to talk to him, but I kinda don't _want_ to anymore."

"If it's important you, like, have to."

"I know," Rogue said as she looked past Kitty, and saw the door to the bathroom start to open. "Kitty, bathroom!"

Kitty's eyes widened as she turned around, and saw Jubilee coming out of the door in her fuzzy yellow robe. Kitty ran as fast as she could towards the door as she saw that Jean was headed for the same destination. Just as Jean was about to enter the bathroom, Kitty managed to phase through her and close the door in Jean's face.

"That was rude," Jean commented.

"Yeah, there's a lot of that going around today," Rogue said bitterly before she could stop herself.

"Guess, I'll just have to wait," Jean sighed as she turned around to face Rogue. "Where have you been all day? You missed a really _interesting_ game," she said with a grin.

"I… slept in pretty late. Needed the rest, I suppose," she answered trying not to say too much.

"Feeling any better?" Jean asked.

"Not really," she said. "I feel _worse_, actually," she said looking away from Jean's face. Why was she being so honest all of sudden? _'I don't want to talk about all this, _remember_?'_ she asked herself.

"What's wrong?" Jean asked.

'_Nothing I can say out loud,_' Rogue thought sadly.

"Why can't you talk about it?" Jean asked confused. Rogue quickly looked up at Jean. "I am so sorry," Jean said rapidly as she realized. "I didn't mean-"

"It's okay," Rogue said immediately. "Really, it's not that big of a deal."

"What's not a big deal?" Scott asked as he walked down the hall towards them.

"_Nothing_," Rogue said. Jean was about to say something else. Probably another apology, if the guilty look on Jean's face gave any indication. "Seriously, Jean, it's fine. _Accidents happen_, " she said before turning her attention to Scott. "What's up?" she asked him, trying to change the topic.

"Baseball," he said dryly.

"Scott, you didn't have fun?" Jean asked with a raised eyebrow.

"I did… for the first _three_ _hours_," he said before shaking his head, dismissing the thought. "Anyway," he started to say, as he looked up at Rogue, "the Professor wants to see you. He said to go to his office whenever you're ready."

"I'll go now," she declared as she started to walk down the hall.

"Like that?" He asked in disbelief.

"Like _what_?" she asked, turning around to face him.

"You don't have gloves on," Jean pointed out.

"I-" she started to say before she looked down at her hands. She didn't have her gloves, or sleeves of any kind. Her arms were completely bare, exposed. Not to mention she still had the towel around her neck. Her hair was still wet, she hadn't brushed it yet. Her feet were bare too. She wasn't ready to talk to anyone.

'_What was I thinking?' _she asked herself.

'_You weren't,'_ the fragment of Magneto offered. Rogue quickly shook her head, pushing him back with the others. She sighed. It felt peaceful: not thinking, coasting through the rest of her day on autopilot, but it was…

'_Dangerous,'_ Rogue thought to herself with a sigh as she glared at her bare skin. _'Okay, no more not thinking. Not until I'm alone.'_

"I didn't even realize," Rogue muttered with a sigh as she headed back towards her room. She opened her door, and threw her towel on the bed before she went to her dresser.

"Rogue, are you okay?" Scott asked. She glanced up to see that he was in her door frame, a look of concern on his face.

'_I really wish I could talk about it,'_ Rogue thought to herself, knowing that she couldn't say anything to him out loud. "I'm… I'm fine," she lied. "Just tired I guess," she said as she took out a pair of black gloves. She took a second to count how many pairs she had. _'Yup, they're all here,'_ she thought as she closed that draw and opened another.

"But you slept in," Jean added. Another glance up, and Rogue saw that both of them were standing in her door way. Jean's facial expression mirrored Scott's.

"Maybe I over slept," she said as took out one of her green sheer shirts, she slipped it over her head. Rogue took out her brush faced the mirror and started to tend to her hair. She could see Jean and Scott through the reflection of the mirror. Their concerned gazes had intensified.

"Is this about Magneto?" Scott asked. "Did something else happen?"

'A lot_ has happened. Too much… too much that I can't talk about,'_ she thought sadly.

"Magneto?" Jean asked puzzled.

'_He didn't tell her already,'_ Rogue thought incredulity. "Magneto's been trying to recruit me," Rogue explained, looking at Jean through the mirror. "I keep saying no, but he's still trying… It's kind of annoying," she added quietly as she continued to brush her hair. "_He's_ very annoying," she said with frustration in her voice. "Look, I'm fine," she said again, meaning it a little more this time. "I'm gonna go talk to the Professor and everything's gonna be okay," she said, forcing herself to smile at the end of her comment. She looked in the mirror again. _'Good enough,' _she thought irritated, just wanting to get out of the room, and away from their apprehensive gazes. "I'll see ya all later," she said hastily as she made her way to the door. Pleased when they moved out of her path, and didn't pry any further.

* * *

Rogue stood outside the door to the Professor's office. Taking a deep breath, she opened it, and stepped inside. There she saw, Professor Xavier, Storm, and Mr. McCoy, sitting, slipping coffee.

"Ah, Rogue, how nice of you to grace us with your presence," Mr. McCoy said as he noticed she had entered the room.

Rogue froze. How many times had he said that to her today?

'_Too many,'_ she thought as she remembered how to command her body to move. "Sorry, about skipping out on the session today," she said as she took a seat in one of the vacant lounge chairs. "It's been a pretty bad week," she replied yet again.

"Never the less-" Mr. McCoy started to say before he was interrupted by the Professor.

"I believe we can forgive, Rogue, this one transgression as long as this type of behavior does not become a habit,' he said, addressing her.

"It won't," Rogue reassured them. Xavier nodded.

"Nor did I think it would be," Xavier said with a smile. She guessed he was trying to make up for his rudeness last night by letting her absence go unpunished, which was fine by her.

'_Ain't about to look a gift horse in the mouth,'_ she thought as she let herself smile back.

"Now, where did you and I leave off from our conversation? And do you mind if Ororo and Hank participant?" he asked before taking another slip of his drink.

"We're not gonna_ look _at my memories right?" she asked uneasily. The Professor seeing her and Magneto kissing was one thing, but letting Mr. McCoy, and Storm see that too. She shuttered at the thought. She wasn't comfortable with that, not at all.

"…No, of course not," Xavier said after a moment. Rogue wasn't sure if he hesitated because he was surprised by the question, or because that was exactly what he had in mind.

"Then, no, I don't mind if they're here…" She took a second to replay the conversation they had last night. It only took a moment. It was a rather brief exchange. "After you look at what happened at the café we didn't really talk about it. I asked if-" she stopped short. _'he knew that Eric was telepathic…_ I_ don't know if Eric telepathic. I really don't think so, but I can't say that,' _she reminded herself firmly. _'I can't say anything I found out today. I won't be able to explain where it came from… This sucks! Why'd I agree to this?' _she asked herself.

"Because if you do decide to divulge certain information to Charles I will have no choice but to remove you from Xavier's _permanently_," Eric threatened. She looked up to see that Magneto was standing outside of the mansion, and was communicating to her through the open window. Eyes widened, she opened her mouth to talk, but the cold stare he aimed at her left her speechless. Magneto lifted his hand up, brought a finger to his forehead, and tapped twice. She understood his meaning.

'_You said you were leaving,'_ she shouted. She knew that he was going to come back eventually, but she didn't think it would be so soon.

"I promised to depart from the mansion, and so I have."

To is credit he was standing _outside_.

She stared at him in astonishment.

'_We never specified the mansion, _Jackass_,'_ she thought infuriated beyond belief. '_You just said you were going to _leave._' _She was too furious to be terrified like she knew she should be. Here she was yelling at Magneto through the window, and three of her guardians were staring at her blankly.

"My mistak-"

'And_ you promised that you wouldn't force me to leave. What the fuck do you call this?'_

"Blackmail," he said calmly. Her anger diminished slightly, starting to turn into something less useful: fear.

'_Why isn't the Professor reading my mind right now?' _she asked in a panic._ 'I've been sitting here for five minutes looking out the window. You'd think-'_

"Charles doesn't fine anything remotely suspicious about your behavior. But then why should he? You have done this _before_, my girl, for a far longer time span, with a more erratic range of emotional display."

She sucked in a breath, recognizing that he was right. There was nothing she could do right now that would seem irregular to him. She looked over at her teachers. Mr. McCoy was staring at her with a puzzled expression, and curiosity. Storm was giving her a look of pity, and understanding. The Professor looked comfortable: it was his office. She realized how many time she had done this before, gotten lost in a silent conversation while he waited for her to be ready to speak.

As good natured as his intentions were, she was starting to agree with Eric, a little, that he was idiot. There he was, one of the most powerful telepaths in the world, sitting, drinking his coffee: completely oblivious, that Magneto was among them, that she was in serious danger.

_'They can't help me,'_ she thought sadly as she looked away from.

"No, they can not," Eric said. She turned her gaze back to his face.

'_If I say no to keeping your secrets, then you take me with you?'_

"Yes."

'_I don't wanna go with you. I wanna stay _here_,'_ she told him.

"You will see me from time to time," he informed her, "some days more than others." She had thought as much, but if it was a choice between seeing him full-time or part-time, she was going to choose part-time. "Any conversation we have from this point on will be subject to this agreement."

'_Okay,' _she thought softly, not knowing what else to think, feeling that she had no other option but to agree.

"Do you understand the choice I am presenting you with?" Magneto asked directing her mind back to the topic. She took a moment before she nodded slowly, looking away from him. "I need to hear you say it, Anna. A comprehensive sentence listing the terms you are agreeing to." She took a deep breath, as a few tears rolled down her face.

Rogue looked up when she saw that Storm was standing in front of her holding a tissue. Rogue took it from her before she wiped the water from her face.

"Thank you," Rogue whispered.

She vaguely heard Storm say "Your welcome."

"Anna," Magneto said, calling for her attention.

'_I understand-… I understand that if I tell anyone about today-'_

"What about today?" Eric asked.

'_That if I tell anyone about our _conversations_ today-'_

"And anything you have learned within them," Eric added. She nodded promptly. "Repeat it," he commanded.

'_And anything I have learned within them that you will take me from here…' _

_"_permanently_,"_ she finished out loud.

"What's permanent, Rogue?" the Professor asked softly. Her eyes widened. Had he read her mind?

"I-" she started to say before Eric interrupted her.

"You said it _aloud_, Anna," Eric screamed, his anger showing. "Understand that if the X-Men become _aware_ of our arraignment they will forget immediately afterwards. That includes_ Charles_," he informed her. She wrapped her arms tightly around herself in a hug, needing the comfort. "Therefore, it would be pointless for you to attempt to convey your situation to them. And a waste of my telepath's time, and my_ tolerance_, if she had to spend a day reconstructing your family's minds because of a slip of _your_ tongue_._" Rogue nodded.

'_It won't happen again… anything else?'_ she asked before she looked up at the window.

He was gone.

* * *

So, that's it for this chapter! I know, short. I should have kept going, but it's been almost a month since I updated. I'm starting to write the next chapter tomorrow night. I'm free this weekend, and I have the basic outline for the plot in my head already, So, I'll post again soon time next week. Probably Thursday.

Till then,

I hope you all liked this chapter and please review!!!!!! I want to know how you feel :)

Speaking of which...

Forgotten Silver Angel: Thank you! I'm very glad you enjoyed chapter eight! I hope chapter nine was worth the wait! Let me know :)

RogueNya: I LOVE making people speechless. I'm glad you liked the chapter. Personally, I want them to end up together too. ^.^ But Magneto is a bit of an ass-hole who keeps putting Rogue in cruel situations. If he hadn't spent the last few months in her head, talking to her, I don't think she would like him very much.

Anyway, it'll still up in the air, and I have a loooooooooong way to go before we get to the end of season four! So, keep reading, and we'll see.

Hope you enjoyed this chapter! I can't wait to hear from you again.

Night Foliage: Nothing what so ever. ;) By all means please keep writing these awesome reviews! I enjoy reading them so much! Any time I need a little pick-me-up I reread some of my favor reviews (Yours obiviously included!) and that gets me back into the flow of writing.

Where they will have smooches and more drama indeed! I smile ever time I read that!

I can't wait to hear from you again! I hope you loved this chapter.


	10. Chapter 10

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Ten

'_Guess not,_' Rogue thought with a sigh as she turned her attention but to the other three people in the room.

"Rogue, what was permanent?" Professor Xavier asked again. Rogue fumbled with the tissue in her hand as took a deep breath.

"It's not important," Rogue said softly. "Can we… can we do this tomorrow? I ready just wanna go to bed. It's been a long day," she said staring up at the Professor: her eyes begging him to accept.

Last night he had not wanted to talk and she'd let it go, why shouldn't he do the same for her?

"But you haven't done anything today?" Mr. McCoy said. It took all of her self-control to keep from snapping at him.

"That we know of," Charles Xavier pointed out. "Kitty told me of Magneto's phone call last night. Has he attempted to contact you further?"

'_Yes,'_ she yelled in her mind. She glanced up at the Professor, no reaction. She sighed. "No."

"Can _you_ contact _him_?" the Professor asked.

"Yeah," she said with a nod. "I have a phone number." Professor Xavier reached over to the table on his left, and picked up a little notepad and pen.

"Would you write it down?" he asked as he handed the pad to Mr. McCoy, who held it out to Rogue.

"Yeah, sure," she said as she took the objects from Mr. McCoy. She quickly wrote down the number, and handed it back to McCoy. "What are you gonna say to him?" she asked before she could stop herself.

"Hopefully, I can convince him to stop pursuing you," Xavier answered.

"Not likely," Rogue murmured. Her comment caused the Professor to raise an eyebrow. "He's stubborn, always has been."

"How do you know that?" Mr. McCoy asked.

"I-" Rogue started to say before the Professor cut her off.

"Rogue has a fragment of Magneto's mind within her own, and thus has a very _intimate_ knowledge of his past."

"Do you have such knowledge of _every_ fragment?" Storm asked.

An image of Storm's mother, on the floor dying, flashed in Rogue's mind. She quickly pushed it back, as a tear rolled down her face. She wiped it away with the tissue.

Rogue was reaching her limit.

"I can't handle anything else today. Can we _please_ talk about all this tomorrow?"

"Rogue, what _happened_ today?" Xavier asked.

"Nothing," Rogue screamed as she looked down at her hands.

"Clearly, _something_ has. Did he call you again?" he asked. She didn't respond. "Did he come here?" he asked.

Rogue's heart started to race.

"Has he threatened you?" The Professor asked strongly. She kept looking at her hands, away from him.

He was so close to the truth, but if he found out…

Rogue took a deep breath.

"He… he wasn't here at the institute," she said calmly. "Nothing happened today," she lied.

"Rogue, please look at me," The Professor asked softly. Slowly her gaze met his. After a moment he said, "I don't think I believe you."

'_Good,'_ she thought to herself. She watched his eyes widen_. 'Oh, god,_' she thought in a panic. _'Did he read my mind?. That is _not _good.'_

"That would be rather _vast_ understatement," Magneto said from behind her. In front of her she saw Storm and Mr. McCoy jump to their feet.

'_They can see you?'_ she asked in disbelief.

"Obviously," Magneto said dryly.

In the blink of an eye a lighten-bolt formed in Storm's hand, and was thrown towards her and Magneto. He deflected the lighten bolt back towards Storm. It hit her in the chest, and down she fell, unconscious.

Mr. McCoy took a step forward, attempted to get to Storm. "Stay where you are if you wish for the girl to remain unharmed," Magneto said.

"He's _buffing_," Rogue screamed.

"Oh am I?" Magneto asked as he put his hand on the side of the chair where Rogue could see it. Like a snake, a piece of metal slithered down, over his hand, and onto the chair. With fear in her eyes she watched as it slid towards her. She tried to get off of the chair but Magneto quickened his movements, and the metal slid up around her throat, forming a necklace of sorts. Her hands went to her throat, attempting to get it off of her, but it was no use. The only person, who could remove the collar, was the man who put it there.

Rogue glanced up at him.

From the maddened expression on his face, it didn't look like Magneto was in any mood to be merciful. The only way to get out of this without anyone else getting hurt was if she did exactly what he said.

She lowered her hands in a sign of surrender.

His eyes met hers, as a small smirk came to his face. Rogue watched as he turned his attention back to the other three people in the room.

"Back. Away. Slowly," Magneto said.

"Magnus," the Professor started to say as he inched forward. Rogue gasped as she watched the Professor's chair forcefully being pushed back against the wall. Several books came crashing down on him. Mr. McCoy turned around to look at the Professor.

"I'm alright," The Professor yelled as he threw the books off of him. Mr. McCoy turned back towards her and Magneto; it looked as through he was getting ready to jump at Magneto.

"Mr. McCoy, do _not _make me repeat myself," Magneto said as the collar constricted on her throat, almost blocking the flow of air to her lungs. The Collar's movement hadn't hurt her, but it was enough to cause her to gasp. And that sound was enough to keep McCoy from advancing.

"Magneto, what do you want?" Xavier asked.

"At the moment, to teach a lesson," he said Rogue felt the collar gently move upwards, telling her to stand up.

She didn't fight it. She didn't fight him.

After she was out of her seat, the chair moved across the room, in front of Mr. McCoy blocking his path. The collar moved again, in Magneto's direction. Promptly she looked up at him. "_This_ is what happened when you do not keep to your end of our deal. Your family _suffers_. This was all _avoidable_, Anna, but you just had to leave little hints."

"I didn't mean-"

"Oh, didn't you?" Magneto asked cruelly as he took a step forward. "When Charles' asked you if I had contacted you today, you thought _yes_. You were_ disappointed_ when he did not hear. Minutes later he did notice and. Here. We. Are… Are you pleased _now_?" he screamed.

"No," she cried shaking her head. "I made a mistake."

"You most certainly did," Magneto said dryly.

"But that _mistake_ has been made, and now we _do_ know," The Professor said.

"Not for long. Blindspot," he called out loudly. The door to the office opened and in stepped a young women, with short black hair, and blue eyes. She was dressed in a white shirt that stopped short of her belly button, black shorts, and black shoes.

"Yes, sir?" Blindspot asked, her hands on her hips, as she stared up at Magneto. She dipped her head to the left, and glanced at the Professor. "I think _he_ just tried to get into my mind," she said as she pointed to the Professor.

"Thankfully, you are_ immune_. Really, Charles, did you think I bring just _anyone_ with me?" Rogue looked at the Professor. The expression on his face was one of terror.

"Magnus, how are you doing this?" The Professor asked. "Why?" he asked.

"I have my reasons, Charles. Reasons that I do not wish for _you _to know."

'_Where is everyone else? Why hasn't the Professor called them?_' Rogue asked herself.

"He has,_ tried_, my girl, but has found that his psychic range has been severely _diminished_."

"Who do you want me start with, sir?" Blindspot asked as he stepped further into the room.

"In a moment," Magneto said as he looked down at Rogue again. "Outside," he commanded, his head gesturing towards the door. Without hesitation, she walked passed him, and out of the office.

"Rogue, wait," she heard Mr. McCoy shout out. She felt the collar slip of her neck, and swiftly turned to see it now at McCoy's neck, in the form of a knife.

"The only way you can help them is by _leaving_," Magneto stressed.

"I'm sorry," Rogue murmured before she fled the room. She turned to see Magneto staring at her, before the door slammed close.

Not knowing what else to do, she sat down against the wall, parallel to the office's door. She drew her knee up, resting her chin on her knees. She glanced up at the closed door, wondering what was he was doing behind it.

A shiver ran down her spine.

She probably didn't want to know.

Rogue sighed, as she replayed what had just occurred in her head. Tears ran down her face for the countless time that day, as she accepted the blame. If she had keep to her end of the deal, none of this would have happened. Storm wouldn't be on the floor, a knife wouldn't be at Mr. McCoy's throat, and the Professor would be still be blissfully unaware of how unsafe his home really was.

And she?

'_I'd probably be in bed by now,'_ she thought sadly. _'If I had just…'_

She inhaled deeply. She shook her head.

'_I wouldn't let this happen again,'_ she thought determined. _'I won't,' _she thought as she glanced up at the door.

All she could now was wait…

………………………………………………………..

And all you can do now is wait!

Sorry that's it for this chapter. I know they're getting shorter, but I'm almost two weeks late the time I promised to finish it. So, I wanted to get up something to you guys to read. It's not that anything I written is different because the chapters are shorter, just it's taking more numbers to get from one place to another. For example, chapter nine, ten, and eleven (If I had more time in the week to work on the chapters) would all be one chapter.

So, yeah. I'm working on it. Slowly but it's being written.

On a good note, I might, be getting my lab top back sometime this week! If that happened, then I'll have a lot more time to work on them, because I wouldn't have to ran around campus searching for an open class room.

That would be awesome!

I miss my lab top :(

Anyway! Reviews!!!!

Night Foliage: Sorry about the cliff hanger in the last chapter… and the one in this chapter…

I'm not going to say any details about what you wrote in the middle paragraph of your review. To do so, would give away pieces of the plot, and I would rather you read it as I write it. Hope you're okay with that.

Anyway as usual, I'm really, really, really, super glad that you're enjoying my fic. I'm can't wait to hear from you again ^.^

Myst4drgn: HI!!!!!!!! Thanks for putting my fic on your favorite story list! And for the review! Hope you liked this chapter!

RogueNya: Hey, you! Yeah, Magneto can do anything he wants!!! That was the whole point to the last few chapters.: for Magneto to make that message clear to Rogue. And at this point I think the message has been more than received.

Thanks, for the kind words, and I can't wait to hear what you have to say about this chapter!


	11. Chapter 11

Two chapters in one week! Is the world ending?

No, I just found more time to write…by not going to work for two days… I wanted to sleep in anyways.

Please enjoy the fruits of me being lazy and irresponsible!

* * *

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Eleven

Finally, the door opened. Magneto stepped out in front of her, closing the door behind him. Rogue hurried to stand up.

"Now, are you ready to try this _again_?" Magneto asked.

"Yes," she said without hesitation. She tried to get pass him, so she could walk towards the door. But he moved with her, blocking her from entering the room. She stopped her movements, realizing he had more to say.

"Know," he started to say as he gazed down at her, "that they remember _nothing_ of the conversation."

"Okay," she said as she met his gaze.

"And for that matter, Ms. Gray's and Mr. Summer's memories have been altered as well. There is not one person in this house who feels that anything is amiss, and it will _stay_ that way," he stated.

"Of course," she answered.

He held her gaze for a few more moments before he said, "Good," he said dryly. "… Anna," he said as he started to lift his hand up. Her eyes widened. She watched him lower it back to his side, forming a fist. "I do not enjoy being _cruel_." Rogue looked back up at him. "Not to _you_," he said gently.

"Then don't be," she muttered.

"You gave me no choice," he said strongly as he stepped closer to her.

He stared down at her for a moment. She could only stare back up at him. So many emotions flashed behind his eyes. He sighed. "Go, and calm your Professor. Then go back to your room. We will finish our conversation there."

"And I don't get a choice," she uttered, turning away from him slightly.

"After what you tried in there," he screamed, his hand pointing towards the office. She winced under the intensity of his voice. "No! Tonight you will _suffer_ my company, for as long as I see fit." He quickly moved to the door, and knocked twice. Rogue turned around and looked to see Blindspot coming out of the door.

"They're ready when ever she is, sir," Blindspot said she closed the door behind her. Rogue moved to get closer to the door, wanting nothing more than to get away from him, but Blindspot was in her way. The black haired girl looked up at her and smiled.

"Good luck," she said giving Rogue a pat on the shoulder, before stepping to the left, and out of her way. Confused, Rogue shook off Blindspot's encouragement and put her hand on the doorknob, but found that it wouldn't turn.

"_This time_, do nothing that will force me to intercede," he whispered in her ear. Rogue froze. She could feel his body behind her, almost touching, towering over her. "Say whatever you must to convince Charles that you are in no danger. I will support whatever lies you tell." he uttered. Rogue nodded.

She took a second to plain out what she was going to say.

"Go in, Rogue, and do not _disappoint_ me," Magneto warned in hushed tone.

Taking a deep breath, she tried the doorknob again. This time it opened, and she walked into the Professor's office.

Everything in the office was back to normal. All three of her teachers were seated were they had been the last time she had entered the room. There was no sign that anything violent had happened. Storm was awake. In fact she didn't look as though she had been hurt at all. Mr. McCoy and the Professor were glancing at her pleasantly. The books were back in the shelves, all the furniture had returned to where it had been. Nothing was amiss.

"Ah, Rogue, how nice of you to grace us with your presence," Mr. McCoy said yet again. Rogue brushed it off, knowing that if she did this right, it would the last time she would ever have to hear him say that phrase.

"Sorry," she said as she closed the door behind her and took the same seat she had before. "Yesterday and the day before were… a lot to handle. I needed a day to myself," she lied. "To think, make sense of it all."

"And have you?" Xavier asked. Rogue nodded.

"I just wanna forget that it. Not like that's gonna happen, but I've said no to him twice already, and I hung up the phone on him last night. He should get that I'm not gonna join him. I don't see why he would keep trying."

"Let us hope that you are right," the Professor said. He sighed. "Did Magneto give you a way to contact him?"

"Yeah," she said with a nod. "I have a phone number."

"Would you write it-" he started to ask as he looked at the table next to him.

"Charles, what's wrong?" Storm asked.

"How strange. I had paper and pen waiting _here_," he said, his hand pointing to the table, exactly where it had been. "I placed them there only a half an hour ago, intending to ask you that question," he said.

Rogue heart started to race yet again.

She watched as the Professor started to look around the table: Storm and Mr. McCoy joining in the search.

'_Shit! If the pad wasn't there then it must've been moved during the fight. If Eric didn't pick it up, then the number still on it and… Fuck_' Rogue took a deep breath as she eyes started to survey the room. '_How the hell am I gonna explain that?_'

She was panicking inside, but somehow she managed to not show her distress on her face. Her breathing was even. Body language neutral.

Her eyes wandered to the couch Mr. McCoy was sitting on. Thankfully, the note pad was underneath the couch leg closest to her.

"Found it," Rogue said as she got quickly, leaned down, and grabbed the notepad from under the couch. She took another glace under the couch. "I don't see a pen everywhere," she said as she stood up, carefully keeping the already written number concealed against her chest.

"Please, use mine," Mr. McCoy offered with a smile as he took a pen out of his pocket. Rogue reached out and took it before she sat down. She put the pen, just close enough to the paper, to make it look as though she was writing. Once she was done with that, she handed the pen and note pad back to Mr. McCoy.

"Thanks," Rogue said.

"Your welcome," Mr. McCoy said with a smile.

"So, now what?" Rogue asked, as she gazed back up at the Professor.

"Now, we go eat dinner," Charles said with a smile as he took the note pad from McCoy and placed it on the table. No doubt in her mind, he planed to call Eric later. "Although, I would like to talk about your and Magneto's encounter at a later date."

"Which one?" Rogue asked.

"Yesterday's: both the incident after school, and the phone call that night," Charles answered.

"But not today, right?" Rogue asked.

"No," he said.

"Good," she said with a sigh. "If no one minds, I'm gonna skip dinner. I ate by myself earlier. So, I ain't hungry. Think I'm gonna go upstairs, and enjoy the _quite_ for a little bit longer," Rogue said as she stood up and headed for the door. "Good night," she said. She heard an ego of 'Goodnight's' from behind her as she walked out the door, and closed it behind her.

"You did well," Eric said. She looked over to see that he was leaning against the wall next to the door. He looked calm, in control.

'_You said we would talk in my room,'_ she thought, slightly confused.

"We will," he said with a small smile. "Walk with me," he said as he pushed himself off of the wall, and headed down the hallway. With a sigh she followed after him.

They made their way, up the stairs, and down the hall in silence. It wasn't until they were both in her room, with the door closed, that Eric spoke again.

"Sit down," he said gently as he sat down at the end of her bed. She moved to sit as far away from him as the length of her bed would allow.

"What do you want to talk about?" she asked.

"I had suspected that you might do or say something that would anger me further, and I had prepared myself to give the proper reaction. But then you performed so proficiently, I remembered that that type of ingenuity is what I have come to expect from you… So, my question is, what was going through that mind of your earlier?"

"Nothing," she answers looking away from him.

"Well that wa-"

"I mean _nothing_ was going through my mind," she exclaimed, trying to make him understand. He raised an eyebrow.

"Elaborate," he commanded.

"I wasn't thinking. I was_ trying_ not to… It was nice. My mind was empty, quite…"

"Peaceful?" he asked. She glanced up at him. He had a look of contemplation on his face.

"Yeah," she said with a sigh as she leaned back on her pillow, staring at the ceiling. "Haven't felt anything like it in years. It felt like it was just me- no it felt like there was _no one_ in my head, me included. I was just… I was just there, living… Best shower I've ever taking." She looked back up at him, when she heard him chuckling.

"What else?" he asked.

"That's it really. Except…" Rogue sat up and took off her green sheer shirt. She glared at him, as she tossed her shirt next to her bed. "That wasn't an _invitation_. I'm just hot," she said, the edge she usually had in her voice was coming back. He chuckled.

"Except what?" he asked with a smirk.

"It was dangerous."

"In what sense?"

"I almost- " She stopped herself before glaring up at him. "You already know all this, don't you?" she asked. The amused expression on his face told her, her guess was right. "So, do we have to go over every detail like you _haven't _been watching me all day?" she asked annoyed.

"Welcome back, Anna. I've missed you," he leered. She rolled her eyes.

"What's the hell is _tha_t supposed to mean?" she asked annoyed. He smirked.

"Perhaps, I will tell you, but not tonight," he said as he got up off the bed.

"Why not?" she asked.

"Because, it has been an extremely long day."

"Tell me about," she muttered as she glanced at her clock. "It's only eight-thirty?" she asked in disbelief.

"You believe it should be later?" Eric asked.

"Yeah, it feels like… " She glanced up at him. "... So, you ain't angry anymore?" she asked.

"No," he said while chuckling softy. "Your explanation for your behavior was sufficient."

"_I_ don't understand why."

"I know," he said with a smirk. "But I do and that is really all that matters."

"Right," she said bitterly as she looked away from him. "… I don't understand how you make me feel so valuable, and so worthless all in the same day."

"Anna-" he started to say, but she interrupted him.

"I'm going to bed now," she said firmly as she laid down on her side. She grabbed her pillow with one hand, and pulled the covers over her shoulders with her other.

"Anna," he said tenderly as he came to kneel at her bedside. His eyes sought hers. She turned to lay on her other side, refusing to look at him. He huffed. She could feel his body shadowing over hers. His hand ghosted over her shoulder. She could see his fingers out of the corner of her eyes.

"May I please touch you?" he asked compassionately. She did not respond. "We don't have to do anything sexual," he assured her. "I just want to hold you as you fall asleep. As I've done so many times before."

She remembered those nights. The comfort she found in his arms, the tranquility, the contentment. She felt safe in his arms… at least she used to.

Tears rolled down her face.

"I can appreciate you wish to deny me, but how much must you deny _yourself_?" he asked strongly. She turned over to look up at him. His face was only a few inches above hers. His hand, now, rested gently on the edge of her bed, waiting to be allowed to progress further. His eyes were bearing down into hers: begging her to say yes, if not to him then, to her own needs. She sucked in a breath, trying to retain her composer, trying to fight the low hot feeling growing in her stomach. It was hard to do while he was staring at her like that: so intensity.

"It would be stupid of me to let you touch me," she whispered.

"Would it?" he asked softy, as his hand slid further onto the bed, taking hold of the blanket.

"Yes," she uttered, before she noticed his hand. "What are you doing?" she asked panicked.

"Taking the blanket off of you," he said calmly, as he slid his hand down the bed. Taking the blanket with it, slowly exposing her shoulders, then breasts, finally her waist. Only her lower half was still under the covers.

"You said we didn't have to do anything sexual," she murmured.

"We haven't… yet," he told her. "Move your arm," he commanded as he glanced at her limb, which was currently pressed against her chest.

"Why?" she asked anxiously.

"Because it is in my way," he said, shifting his gaze to her eyes. "Just lower it to your side. " She didn't. He sighed. "I have given you my word, that I will not touch you, until you give me your permission. And I will keep to my word, but they are other things I can do I induce the reaction I seek."

"What things?" she asked.

"Move that arm, and I'll _show_ you," he promised with a smirk. She took a deep breath.

"I think I'm losing my mind," she said softy.

"What makes you say that?" he asked as he moved his other hand by her face. Falling an inch short of actually touching her. If she made any sudden movements she would probably make contact.

"After everything you've done to me, to my family. I shouldn't want anything to do you. I should hate you."

"But you do not?" he asked.

"No... I don't," she uttered.

"Then what _do_ you feel for me?" he asked softly.

"A lot," she said glancing away from him.

"A lot of what?" he asked with grin.

"_Pick_ an emotion and I feel it about you… Sometimes I almost hate you. I'm getting closer to feeling that way. I have to. I can't like you, not now."

"Anna, there is no reason why you _torture_ yourself like this. It is perfectly expectable for you to like me. We have shared so much with each other over the past few months," he said. She held his gaze again: her eyes begging him to drop the subject. He sighed. "What else? What other emotions have you felt for me?"

"Eric, I'm exhausted. I wanna go to bed now."

"You are already in your bed."

"I wanna go to _sleep_."

"And I wish to keep speaking. I wonder which of us will get our way?" he asked. Her eyes narrowed.

"Keep saying things like that, you'll make it easier for me." She closed her eyes. "Please go away."

"You said earlier that you felt as though you were losing your mind. Why?" he asked. She opened her eyes to look at him.

"Because," she shouted.

"Why?" he asked even louder, his voice urging her to answer.

"Because you're sitting there, looking at me like_ that_, and despite everything you've done all I wanna to do is reach out and pull you _closer_," she confessed.

"And why haven't you?" he asked as he moved his face nearer to hers.

"Because every sane thought I have in my head is reminding me of everything you've done, everything you gonna do, and it holds me back."

"Then, perhaps, you should back away from me," he suggested. "For, at this moment, I do not have to will power to pull away."

"Maybe I should," she said softy. Another deep breath, and she slowly pushed herself away from him. She had to be careful she didn't touch him.

Now there was a few feet between them. She closed her eyes and started to let out a sigh in relief, until she felt hot breath on her face. She quickly opened her eyes to find that Eric had moved onto the bed, and was now laying beside her. He was laying on his side, the same as she was, propping himself up with one elbow.

"I should've seen that one coming," she said.

"I was surprised you didn't," he laughed. "Actually… I was hoping you did realize, and moved to _let_ me onto the bed." She gazed up at him. "Did you?" he asked.

"No," she said shaking her head.

"Do you mind?" he asked.

"Ye-"

"Be honest with yourself, my girl…" he said as his hand neared her face. Hovering just a few inches. She felt her face blush.

_'What is wrong with me?'_ she asked herself. _'He ain't even touching me and I'm'_

"Anna," he said tenderly. he waited until she was looking into his eyes before he asked "Do you mind that I'm laying beside you?" Her breath started to quicken.

"N- ...No," she said again.

"Would you mind if I kissed you?" he asked.

"No," she answered truthfully, shaking her head. His fingers brushed against her face because of her movement, she gasped. He smirked, lowing his lips towards hers.

"May I?" he asked once he was only an inch away. She closed her eyes, needing to stop herself from staring into his eyes. She inhaled deeply.

It took every ouch of strength she had left to say "No."

He groaned, "Why not?"

"Because," she shouted as she let herself fall forward: her head making contact with his chest.

"Anna?" he asked confused.

"I liked your first idea. Nothing sexual, just hold me," she murmured into his shirt. She felt his arm wrap around her waist. She felt him use his feet to kick the blanket off of her completely. She gasped as he lifted her and repositioned himself to lay beneath her. His hand went to her face, gently caressing. He kissed her forehead. She gasped, taking a fistful of his shirt. His grip on her waist tightened as he pulled her against him. "This _is _sexual," she managed to mumble.

"I know," he uttered as he tilted her chin. Her eyes met his. He brushed his lips against hers. She pulled back. "Don't fight me," he whispered. She shuddered in his hold. His fingers danced against the skin on her back, inflaming her senses. Her eyes closed, enjoying the feeling of his hand on her back. Soon his lips were on her reddened cheek. Although Rogue knew she should move away, she melted into his touch.

Her body didn't want to stop the sensations Magneto was causing, and her mind was too exhausted to fight. The next time he put his lips to hers, she didn't pull away, she opened her mouth to allow him to deepen the kiss. He groaned as he broke the kiss. He kissed her everywhere on her face. His hand eagerly stroked every bit of skin he could reach. Her breath was out of her control.

She felt him lift her shirt up, but she barely felt the fabric being stripped from her body. She didn't recall lifting her arms, but never the less she was now laying on top of him, shirtless. Next he was making short work on her bra. In only a few seconds, she saw him throw her undergarment to the floor.

The next thing she felt was his mouth on her breast, licking, sucking at her nipples. Sounds she had never made before started to escape to mouth. Each one seemed to only encourage the pair of lips driving her closer to the edge. She felt her back hit the bed. She opened her eyes, to see his face nearing hers. Their lips meet, as she felt him put some of his weight on her. Her hands moved to his shoulders, wanting something to hold onto. His mouth travels down her body, once again favoring her breasts. One of her hands went into his hair, pressing down, holding him close to her.

She screamed as she felt his fingers slip underneath her underwear, rubbing relentlessly. Her back arched, she found herself moving against his hand. Meer moments later, sparks flew behind her eyes, and she melted.

Nothing had ever felt this good.

He kissed her lightly.

"Care to return the favor?" Eric asked. She opened her eyes, to see that he was shirtless as well.

_'When had the hell did that happen?_' she asked herself. He chuckled as he took hold of her hand, and placed it on his cock. She gasped, as he lowered his lips to hers again.

"Grant me this small favor," he whispered in her ear as his hand showed hers what to do. "…Please…" he begged as he kissed her ear. Despite herself, she moved his hands as he wished her too. His hand went back to her breast. His lips latched onto her throat. He was adding several more marks to her neck. It would be much harder to cover up, but she found that, at that moment, she couldn't care less. He let out a low groan as he finished. He kissed her again.

"Thank you," he uttered. Surprised she opened her eyes. He was now laying beside her. She looked up at him. His eyes held, only, compassion for her.

"You- your welcome," she responded in kind. He smiled down at her, as his hand caressed her cheek. She ran her hand over his bare chest. His fingers trailed down her body, over her breasts, across her stomach, until he was swiftly approaching the very sensitive nerve ending in between her legs.

"Again?" he asked. Her eyes widened. Her breath, which had only started to return to normal, became more jagged than it had been. "I'll take that as a yes," he said with a smirk, before he kissed her. His lips left hers, and traveled, down her body, leaving soft kisses behind. Her body was on fire. His hands started to slide her pants off of her.

"W-What are you- you doing?" she asked. He lifted his eyes to meet hers.

He placed another soft kiss on her stomach before he raised his lips enough to say, "You know _exactly_ what I am doing." She didn't know what expression was on her face, but whatever it was it made him leer. He removed her pants and underwear completely, before his lips continued their descent. Her eyes closed as his mouth found what it had been searching for. Her hand dug into the sheets on her bed, as one of his moved back to her breast. Her head tossed back and forth: each thrust of his tongue bringing with it another wave of pleasure. His other hand found one of hers. Their fingers intertwined as she screamed out one last time.

Moments later he, was face to face with her again, laying on top of her naked body.

"Anna?" he asked softy as he took her chin in his hand. She lazily tried to open her eyes, but every time they would fluttered closed. "Are you alright?" he asked, she could hear his amusement in his voice. She managed to nod.

"S-Sleep," she mumbled. She heard him chuckle darkly as he lifted himself off of her. A minute later she felt him lifting her up, into a sitting position. "What ar-"

"Shh," he hushed softly. "Ms. Pride will be back eventually," he said as he lifted her arms, "And what explanation would you have for sleeping naked?" he asked as he gently kissed her forehead. This time she really did put effort into opening her eyes. "Shh," he said again. "Like me handle this. You get the sleep your body is so desperately calling for."

The idea of trusting him with her unconscious naked body frightened her. But as much as she tried to fight her body's desire to pass out, darkness still over came her.

* * *

And that's it for this chapter!!!!

I hope you all liked it. Please review!!!

Speaking of which…

LadyNorth76: Thank you for loving my work! I hope four days was soon enough ^.^

Sinner-Pandemonium: Hi you! : ) I hope you liked what happened this chapter! Thanks for the review!!!!!

Darkxangelx-xo: Thank you for adding both my fics to your favorite's list and to your story alert!

Darkness-Lightness: I don't think it when he's mean either, but it had to be done. Situation called for it. Anyway, I hope you loved this chapter! Thank you for reading!


	12. Chapter 12

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Twelve

Rogue woke up with a jolt, practically jumping out of the bed.

"Hey, are you, like, okay?" Kitty asked her. Rogue looked around. It was morning, and she was, somehow, dressed in her pajamas. Kitty was sitting on her bed, lab top on her lap.

"Yeah," Rogue sighed. "I'm fine," she mumbled as she threw the covers off of her. She had to look at the sheets twice.

They were not the same ones she had fallen asleep on.

Rogue took a deep breath; realizing how clean her bed smelled... How clean she smelled.

...Had he _bathed_ her?

_'Oh my god,'_ she thought as her face flushed.

"Rogue?" Kitty asked, concerned.

How much did she sleep through last night? Did she even want to know?

"I'm fine," Rogue repeated quickly as she got off of the bed. Rogue felt Kitty's eyes following her as she sauntered to her dresser. Rogue tried to ignore her roommate as she opened the first draw and pulled at the first pair of black pants she saw. She closed that draw with her knee as her hand reached for the knobs on her shirt draw, and pulled. Expecting to see one of her black shirts, she paused when she saw a purple one instead.

'_Where'd this come from?'_ she asked as she lifted it out of the dresser.

"Cute shirt," Kitty commented.

"Thanks," Rogue uttered as she noticed there was a piece of paper on top of the next shirt in the draw. The folded white note said 'Anna' on it. She instantly recognized Magneto's handwriting.

"When you'd buy it?" Kitty asked.

"About a week ago," Rogue lied as she snacked the note out of the dresser, hiding it within the folds of the pants. "I'm not sure I should wear it though," she said honestly.

"Let me see it," Kitty said as she closed her lab-top, and placed it on the bed. She got up and walked over to Rogue, holding her hands out.

Rogue gave Kitty the shirt with one hand, as she placed the pants on top of the dresser with the other.

"Hmm," Kitty said as she held it out in front of her. She looked at the shirt and then Rogue, then back to the shirt. "You would look totally hot in this," she concluded. Rogue took a closer look at the shirt.

"And _deadly_," Rogue added. "That's not making it all the way over my stomach, and my shoulder's would be exposed…"

"Have you, like, seen the front?" Kitty asked with a giggle. Rogue raised an eyebrow. Kitty kept giggling as she turned the shirt around to face Rogue. Rogue gasped. The front dipped lower than any other shirt she owned.

"I don't know what_ I_ was thinking," Rogue said with her hand on her hips.

"Hmm, you could wear it if you had something underneath. Something like…" Kitty started to say as she turned her attention to Rogue's dresser. "Hey!" Kitty reached down and picked up a black tank top. "Something like this," Kitty said with a smile as she handed the shirt to Rogue. This shirt was new too. "If you wear this underneath your shoulders will be covered," Kitty said. Rogue raised an eyebrow. "Well… mostly," she with a half smile. Rogue stopped to relook at the shirt. "Now, like, go try them on."

"Huh?"

"I totally want to see," Kitty said bubbling with glee. "Go, go," she encouraged as she waved towards the door.

"Okay, okay" Rogue said as she grabbed the pants. "I'll be right back," she said as she headed out the door and into the bathroom. She placed the clothes on the sink and threw open the pants looking for the note. She found it and started to read.

'_Anna, I have cost you two shirts… two?'_ she questioned. '_There was the one in the elevator that got ripped and…' _Suddenlyan image of Eric throwing a torn shirt away from the two of them flashed in her mind. Her face blushed, and breath quickened. Last night he had literary ripped the shirt off of her, not having the patience to lift it over her head.

She took a moment to calm herself before she continued to read the note. _'You have my apologizes. I hope the ones I have brought are adequate replacements…'_ She stopped to take another glance at the shirts.

They were nice. They just showed more skin then she was used to showing. She looked back at the note, and finished reading it. Rogue couldn't help but laugh.

It was signed 'Your Bastard.'

With a sigh she folded the note again. She glanced at the clothes again, and sighed.

She really shouldn't put on the shirts. It would be like he was marking her… with clothing? The purple was very close to the color of his cape… too close.

But on the other hand she did promise Kitty she would try them on…

'_They're just _shirts_,'_ she told herself as she rolled her eyes.

And with that thought Rogue got dressed into the clothing Magneto brought her.

A few moments later she took a look at herself in the mirror, and smiled.

_'I look _good_,'_ she thought satisfied.

"The color suits you," Eric said. Rogue gasped as she looked up and saw his reflection behind her. Her fighter's instincts took over and she quickly turned around, aiming a kick at his chest. He caught her leg in his hands.

"Anna, it's only me," he said gently with a smile.

"Reflex," she explained as she looked up from his white button down shirt, and met his gaze.

"You have seen me here in the institute many times before this morning. One would think you would be accustomed to my presence by now," he said as he released her leg.

"I've always had a warning... before yesterday," she said as she took a step away from him. "…You shouldn't sneak up on people like that," she said strongly as she crossed her arms over her chest.

"You have my apologizes, Anna," he said.

Rogue glared at him for a moment before she said, "Okay..." She almost pointed out that he said he was leaving, but realized that like the other five or six times she had said it, it would do no good. It certainly wouldn't made him leave any sooner. "What are you doing here anyway?" she asked, her voice clearly displaying her annoyance with the situation.

"I came to comment on your new clothing," he said as he took a step forward. "You're entrancing, my dear." he said as he reached out on drew his finger down the strap on the black shirt. Rogue felt her face flush. She paused, trying to overpower the sensual feeling he was stirring in her with something else. Any other emotion would do. That knowing smile on his face wasn't helping any. It reminded her of the soft smile he showed her last night while they were...

Her face flushed a deeper red.

_'Stop thinking about that,'_ she told herself firmly. _'Now ain't the time,' _she thought as his fingers ran across her collarbone. "Then why did you leave the note?" she asked, trying to keep her mind on the present. She gasped as his fingers ran up her neck.

"It made you laugh, did it not?" he asked as his hand wrapped around the side of her neck, rubbing gently.

"Yeah," she muttered, her eyes closing as he caressed her neck. He must have stepped closer to her because, after she closed her eyes, she could feel his breath on the side of her neck. His lips brushed over her skin as his other hand went to her waist. Taking advantage of the shirt's high cut, his hand touched bare skin.

"Then it served it purpose," he muttered before he kissed her neck.

"Wait," she said as her eyes shot open. "How do you know I laughed?" she asked. She backed away from him slightly, so she had a better view of his face. He didn't respond. "_That_ door hasn't opened since I closed it," she said pointing at the door. "How long have you been standing there?" she asked. Her eyes widened. "Did you _watch_ me _undress_?" she asked angered.

"Anna, last night I saw _everything_ there is to see, and _now_ you are acting prudish?" he asked.

"That was _different_. I l_et_ you see me. You had my _permission," _she said as she slapped his hand off of her hip. "I didn't let you in this room. I- You were standing there and I couldn't see you." She paused as something else occurred to her. "Oh my god," she exclaimed as she looked up at him. "You were the fragment. You were always here, with me. _Every_ time I took a shower or undressed... you _watched_ me," she yelled disturbed.

"Anna, please, keep your voice _low_," he whispered. "I'm sure you do not want Blindspot to alter anyone else's memory," he warned as his hand caressed her face.

She felt a spark of fear as she was reminded of how Magneto kept his secrets. For a moment she relived sitting in front of the door to the Professor's office. The promise she had made to herself and her family escaped from her lips before she had a chance to stop it.

"I won't let this happen again. I won't," she whispered, the helplessness she felt at that moment consuming her every action.

"Of course you will not allow it to happen again," he said softly as he wiped away tears from her eyes, "my strong, girl." He kissed her forehead as her eyes closed. His hand traveled to her hip, as he removed any distance between their bodies. She could feel the heat coming off of his body, warming her as his arm wrapped tightly around her waist. "My cunning rogue," he whispered before he kissed her cheeks. His hand moved into her hair as he brought her lips to his.

Her eyes shot opened as she felt his tongue enter her mouth. The kiss bringing her, out of the memory and back to the present she realized what she was doing.

As usual the moment she displayed any type of vulnerably Magneto used it to pull her closer into his arms. She was sick of it. This time she was going to make that fact was apparent. Next time he would think twice about pulling her towards him.

Rogue lifted her arms up. She moved one of them to his chest The other she lifted until it was at the same level of his face. Forming a fist she arched it back. She broke the kiss a second before she pushed her fist forward with all her might into his cheek, punching him as hard as she could..

He let out a low growl as his hands sieged her wrists. Using his much larger body he towered over her as he pushed her against the wall. She let out a gasp as her back made contact with the wall.

_'That hurt,'_ she screamed in her head as she tried to knee him in between his legs. He quickly moved one of his hands away from hers and grabbed her knee.

"Anna, stop this," he uttered as he struggled to keep both of her hands restrained in just one of his. "You are not helping anyone, least of all yourself, by attacking me," he said trying to talk sense into her. Despite his words, she still struggled against him, trying to get her hands out of his.

There was a knock at the door.

"Rogue, like, what are you doing in there?" Kitty asked from the other side of the door. Magneto turned his head towards the voice. Rogue used the moment to make one last effort to removed her hands from his hold. Using all her strength she managed to pull her right hand out of his. He turned back towards her just in time to receive another punch in the face. This hit caused him to release her other arm as he stumble back half the length of the bathroom.

"Other people need to use the bathroom," Jubilee yelled as Rogue quickly gained her footing and went to kick him in the chest.

"You leave me no choice," Magneto whispered as small metal strips formed out of nothingness. Midway through her attack, the strips raced to the middle of Rogue's arms and legs, pushing her body against the wall. She struggled against the restrains. She couldn't move an inch.

There were several more knocks at the door as Magneto marched up to her.

"Rogue, what is going on in there?" Kitty shouted as Magneto's hand wrapped around her neck, much as the collar had last night. "Are you okay?" Kitty's concerned voice called out as Magneto's narrowed eyes met Rogue's.

_'No, no I'm not,'_ Rogue thought as Magneto stared into her eyes with anger. He looked as thought he wanted to kill her.

"She's fine," Jubilee said. "She's just taking her sweet time in there. _As usual_," she shouted as she banged on the door.

"You've decided to take a shower," Magneto whispered harshly. Rogue, frozen with fear, barely registered what he said.

"Come out already," Jubilee screamed as she knocked on the door a few more times.

"Say it," Magneto ordered.

"Rogue, if you don't say something I'm coming in there," Kitty yelled.

"Now," Magneto commanded as his grip on her neck tightened.

"I- I'm gonna take a shower," Rogue shouted out. On cue the knobs in the shower turned, seemingly on their own, adding to the facade.

"You're what?" Jubilee screamed.

"There are other bathrooms," Kitty said. "You can use one of those, okay?"

"I shouldn't have too," Jubilee screamed. "Why didn't you _stay_ in that other bedroom?" Jubilee shouted. "Things were easier then," she yelled as she banged on the door again.

"Yes, they most certainly were," Magneto whispered as the striped formed into four large rings. The two at her wrists moved up her arms, concealed beneath her clothing. The two on her legs moved towards her feet. He let go of her neck as he lowered himself to the ground. He lifted up the hem of her pant's legs and reformed the rings to fit on her ankles.

Magneto rouse from the floor, standing in front of her again.

"Go to _that_ room, Anna," he said as his eyes made contact with hers again. "Do not delay. Have no one follow you," Magneto ordered. "Let me assure you, you do not wish to see what will occur if you do not do as I say," he warned in a whisper.

He stared at her a moment waiting for his warning to take full effect. Her eyes widened with fear. If she didn't do as he said he would take her from the institute. He didn't have to say it. The hardened look in his eyes was all she needed.

Rogue took a deep breath, before nodding furiously. He continued to stare at her, as the knobs on the shower turned again, before he moved away from her.

Rogue's body shook in fear of Magneto and with anger at Jubilee as she stepped towards the door. She couldn't do anything about Magneto, as she had just confirmed, but she could say a thing or two to Jubilee. Rogue's hand gripped the doorknob, ready to pull it open. She didn't look behind her to see when Magneto was. If he was in view of her friends that was his own damn problem.

Rogue took a deep breath as she threw open the door. She saw Jubilee halfway down the hall as the girl turned around to look at her.

"You want the bathroom. It's all your bitch," Rogue said as she walked passed her.

"How dare you?" Jubilee screamed as she gripped Rogue's arm turning her around. "What the hell is that?" she screamed as felt the metal ring through the shirt.

_'Fuck,' _Rogue screamed in her mind. "None of your business," Rogue shouted. _'Can't I get one fucking break? Just one?' _she asked herself in anger. "I've been spending the last hour trying to gain some amount of control over my life," Rogue shouted in Jubilee's face. "What the fuck have you done this morning? Broke a nail?"

"You are so dead-" Jubilee started to say as her hand started to glow.

"What is going on out here?" Scott asked as he ran up to the two of them. Scott grabbed Jubilee's hand. "We don't use our powers on one another offensively," he said as he released her hand. "... Unless you're in the danger room," he added.

"Anytime you want-" Jubilee started to say.

"I've got better things to do," Rogue said.

"You are such a-" Jubilee tried to say as took a step closer to Rogue.

"Do I have to call Mr. McCoy?" Scott asked as he moved to stand in between them.

"No, Scott," Rogue said before she turned to back to Jubilee. "You wanted to use the bathroom _remember_? You screamed and hit at the door for five minutes complaining. So, I left so you could go in. The only keeping you from doing in there is your own stubborn ass. So, what the fuck are you waiting for?" she asked as Kurt teleported in next to Scott.

"Rogue could you tone down the language a little?" Scott asked. "It's not going to help the situation any."

"Fine," Rogue said as she continued to glare at the other girl. "Seriously, are you just gonna _stand_ there all day?" she asked. Jubilee screamed out in anger as she walked passed Rogue and Scott. Rogue turned around to watch her wall into the bathroom and slam the door close.

"What was that all about?" Kurt asked.

"_That_," Rogue said annoyed. "As far as I know."

"She was really mad about you yelling at her friend. What was her name?" Kurt asked.

"Amy," Rogue answered, "and that was an accident. I didn't mean to be rude to her. I _thought_ I was talking to _Magneto,_" she said. Kurt shuddered a little.

"Are you okay, sis?" Kurt asked concerned. Rogue smiled as the nickname.

"Yeah I'm fine," she lied. "I just need to go clear my head," she said as she started to walk down the hall. She heard footsteps behind her. "Alone," she said strongly: instantly regretting her tone of voice when she heard Kurt sigh and teleport out of the hallway.

"Did you have to be cold?" Scott asked from behind her.

"No, I didn't," she said softly. "I'm gonna apologize to him later," she said as she hugged herself._ 'If I'm still here,'_ she thought sadly as her hands brushed up against the rings.

"**Do not delay."**

Rogue sucked in a breath. How long had she been in this hallway?

"Scott, I have ta go," she said before she started to walk briskly down the hall. As she turned the corner she spun around to look at Scott. Realizing those might have be the last words she would get to say to her younger brother, she had to do something. "Cheer him up for me would ya?" she asked hopefully.

"Why don't you?" he asked.

"I got something I gotta do. It's real important. You and Kitty make him feel better, okay?"

"Okay," he said nodding his head. "Finish whatever you have to do _fast_."

"I'll try," she said, turning the corner as she started to run towards the room.

* * *

In less than a minutes Rogue had ran to the guest bedroom she had used to practice her mental powers.

And where was Magneto?

_'Not fucking here,'_ she thought in frustration. She had checked the room, and the adjoining bathroom three times. He was nowhere to be found.

How many hours had she spend in here alone with Magneto? She had lost count. Rogue had spent whole days in this room. Just her, Eric, and her memories.

After checking the room over for a fourth and final time she gave up, deciding to sit on the bed. If he was in the room, he didn't want her to know about it. And if he really wasn't in the room, there was no point for her to search further.

With a sigh she let herself collapse onto her back, her head falling gracefully onto the pillow.

How many nights had she fallen asleep in his arms in this bed?

_'Too many,'_ she thought as tears ran down her face. Rogue quickly sat up. She pulled the purple shirt over her head and threw it on the bed. She pulled at the black shirt next _'That might piss him off more,' _the rational side of her mind pointed out. And image of the look he had given her only twenty minutes creeped to the surface of her mind. It had looked like he wanted to kill her. _'Screw his anger,'_ she thought as she lifted the shirt over her head, leaving her in only the a black bra from the waist up. She didn't want to be in the clothes he had brought for her for a second longer.

She got off the bed and walked to the dresser. Thankfully, she had left a few shirts in there. She opened up of the draws and pulled out one of her black tank tops. It didn't mater that their was almost no difference between the shirt she was putting on and the one she had pulled off as through it was laced with poison. She knew that the shirt she had on now was hers. All her's and not a token of someone else's ownership of her.

Rogue picked up the black shirt Magneto had gotten her off of the floor. She wanted it out of her sight. She closed the draw that had her clothing in it. She didn't want to get her possessions mixed up. She started to walk to the other dresser in the room.

_'This room makes no sense,' _Rogue thought for the countless time. There was no reason there should be two dressers in the room. One dresser and a closet was more than enough for one person. Everyone else only had one dresser._ 'So, why did this room have two?'_ she asked herself as she opened one of the draws. She gasped as she saw the draw was fulled with male clothing. A pile a white button down shirts, and a pile a of black pants. She recoiled several feet.

That was all the fragment had ever wore. The same white shirt, and black pants. She had thought it was because Eric was only in her mind. Who needs a large variety of clothing when they have no physical presences? Besides, the outfit suited him. The fabrics were comfortable, he had said it himself. She had noticed herself, quite a few times actually.

Now that she was thinking about it, _'That's the same outfit he wore yesterday...'_ she started to draw up images of Magneto from the past few days. _'And today... and at the school... and the cafe... How the hell didn't I notice that?'_ she asked herself in anger.

Rogue walked up to the dresser, she closed the top draw, and then opened the middle one. Inside she saw underwear and socks. She slammed it closed and opened the bottom draw. Inside she saw two stacks of books, and a pair of his black shoes.

_'I don't believe it,'_ she thought as she kicked the draw close. She sat on the bed, as she stared at his dresser wide eyed._ 'He's been _living_ here,'_ she thought in disbelief.

She laughed as she drew knee up onto the bed. "Prof's been looking for Eric like crazy and the whole time all he had to do was go _up stairs_," she said with a short laugh as she rested her elbow on her knee. _'I can't believe it,'_ she thought._'Practicing in here was- … it was his idea...'_ She ran her hand through her hair._ 'How long has he been living here?'_ She let out a groan as she rested her forehead in her hand. _'It doesn't even matter. He's living here. He's been living here. He gonna keep living here, no one knows, and there ain't a damn thing I can do about it,'_ she shouted in her head as she once again noticed the rings on her arm. She brought her hand to the ring and wrapped her fingers around the top of it as best she could. He finger nails painfully pushing into her skin around the ring: she pulled as hard as she could.

Nothing... it wouldn't move.

_'Great! He ain't here, I can't get this damn thing off,'_ she thought as she glared at the ring, pulling. She groaned as she let go of the ring.

If anyone besides Jubilee had felt the rings they would have demanded to know what they were. They would have looked, or told the Professor and then...

_'Oh god,'_ she thought horrified. The Professor would know instantly that Magneto was behind it.

**"****Understand that if the X-Men become aware of our arraignment they will forget immediately afterwards... It would be... **** a waste of my telepath's time, and my tolerance, if she had to spend a day reconstructing your family's minds because of a slip of your tongue." **

_'Or arm,'_ Rogue thought sadly. She sighed. After attacking him like she did, she doubted that Magneto had any tolerance left._ 'I can't even go anywhere,'_ she cried. _'Not while I got these things on me.' _ Rogue switched arms, pulling at the ring with all of her might.

_'Stupid things won't come off,'_ Rogue thought frustrated as she let go of the ring. It didn't make sense: her arms got smallest on the way down. She should be able to slip it right off. She sighed as she pulled her knee closer to her body. Her hands went to the ring on her right ankle and pushed down.

Nothing again.

She rolled up the hem of her pants to take a better look at the ring. Even through it was big enough, the ring didn't move around. There was a little bit of space. She should be able to turn it at least an inch. But no... nothing.

There could be only one explanation...

"You're here, ain't ya?" she asked, her eyes narrowing.

Rogue sat there motionless, listening to the silence of the room.

Nothing...

"What are you waiting for?" she screamed. "You're gonna do whatever the fuck you want to me, right? … So, just _do it_ already," she demanded as tears ran down her face. "... It's not like this situation could get any worse," she mumbled as she made the mistake of closing her eyes.

* * *

Review time!

LadyNorth76: Sorry I took so long to update. Thanks for the advice about details ^.^ I really hoped you loved this chapter! And I can't wait to hear what else you have to say!

Sinner-Pandemonium: I LOVE your review! The face you used and the "Holy Moly" were perfect. Thank you for that ^.^ I hope you loved this chapter and I can't wait to hear what else you have to say.

Eris R. Lebeau: Thanks for all the reviews! Oh man, where do I start?

Chapter Eight: Thanks! I'm glad you noticed that he didn't mention Kurt. He didn't mention Logan either, for the same reason ^.^

Chapter Nine: Yeah, It's going to be a while before I reveal what Emma's getting out of the deal.

Chapter Ten: I'm glad you liked the suspense. I also love seeing characters for from the comics in these fan fics. There are so many characters in the Marvel universe, there is always going to be someone who suit my needs. I never have to attempt to make an OC. I LOVE that!

Can't wait to hear what you have to say about chapter eleven and twelve.

Darkness-Lightness: Wow! THE best Magneto/Rogue story ever? Thanks! That has to be the best compliment ever!

Just checking, have you ever read "Inappropriate Conduct" by Miss Information? Or ANY Magneto/Rogue fic by either Willowaus, or Sionnain? Because they are really, really, really good. If you haven't, I suggest you take a look. I learned pretty much everything I know about writing Magneto/Rogue from reading their stories.

Thanks again for that compliment. That really made my day!

I hope you loved this chapter and I can't wait to hear what else you have to say.

Meow114: Thank you reading and adding my fic to your favorite story list.

Silver Thief and Dark Lord Of Ori thank you both for adding my fic to your story alert!

Tenchi13 thanks for adding both my fics to your favorite story list! ^.^

And thank you to everyone who is reading! I hope you all loved it!


	13. Chapter 13

Hey all, sorry I took so long to write. I had the writer's block, as well as a lot of homework. I'm going to try and write more and not go another month without updating, but I'm starting to test subjects for my Independent study this week, so I'm about to get really busy. Knowing me, I'll probably get more writing done because I'll have to plain in advance when I'm going to write. So here's hoping...

Just want to say a quick thank you to everyone who's still reading. You guys are the reason I'm doing this. And I really hope you're all loving this story!!!

Please Enjoy

* * *

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Thirteen

Rogue groaned as she felt herself waking up. It took her less than a second to recall everything that had happened before she had closed her eyes. She shuddered as she raced to open her eyes.

She was laying on the bed, in the guess surveyed the room, everything was where it should be the to dressers, the bed, the closet, the door that led to the adjoining bathroom. Everything looked the same.

_ 'He wouldn't of gone to the trouble of putting me to sleep if he didn't change anything... what did he change?'_ she asked as she stood up. _'Am I even at the institute?'_ she asked in fear. She walked over to the window and glanced outside nervously. _'It looks like the institute,'_ she thought happily as she saw some of the younger students attacking each other, playfully. _'But what if it ain't?' _she asked anxiously as she moved her arms to hug herself. She started to rub her arms up and down slowly as she thought, _'Girl relax. You're just over thinkin-' _she paused as hands rubbed over smooth skin._ 'The metal it's-'_ she stopped at her shoulders, and gasped. She quickly kneed down on the ground and pulled up the hem of her pants._ 'it's gone.'_ She swiftly switched to the other leg. She let out a sigh of relief. That metal ring was gone as well.

It took only a second for her relief to transform into panic.

_'Oh, god, is that a good or bad?' _Rogue asked as her heart started to race. She stood up and ran towards the door. Her hand clenched the door-nob, and just as she was about to turn the nob she paused. The only sound in the room was her overactive heart beat, and rapid breathing. _'What it won't open?'_ she asked herself as she hesitated to move.

Question after question flowed into Rogue's mind: What if she was not longer in the institute? What if Magneto had taken her from her home, and she was now in she room that looked similar to it? Or what if she was in the institute, but he wouldn't let her leave this room? How long would it be until her friends realized she was missing? How long until they started to look for her? Would they be able to? Would Magneto let them? Was she even someplace where they could find her?

_'There is only one way to find out, my dear.'_ Magneto said calmly.

_'Are you really him or the fragment?' _she asked.

_'At this particular point in time do such distinctions actually matter?' _he asked. She thought about for a moment.

_'No...'_ she thought sadly.

'_Open the door,' _he commanded gently. Rogue tighten her grip on the door-nob, as she stared at it.

_'Eric, I'm afraid,_' she confessed.

_'Smart girl,'_ he commented smugly.

Tears ran down her face as she screamed, '_That ain't helping.' _She heard him laugh darkly.

_'And you assume I am here to help?'_ he asked coldly.

_'You always have before,' _she thought slightly confused.

_'No, _I _have not. My counterpart is the one who is infatuated with you. For the life of me, I don't understand why. You're pretty when you do not insist on wearing that face of oil and grease you comically refer to as make-up... But you're a_ child_,' _he said with disgust in his voice. _'You're intelligent. More so than the majority of those your age. But that is only because of my counterpart's influence...' _He paused for a long moment._ 'That would explain quite a bit,'_ he murmured in her mind. She had to concentrate to hear him fully.

_'What would explain what?'_ she asked.

_'...I am not in the mood to _share_,' _he informed her dryly.

"You don't have to be in the mood," she said strongly. _'I can take whatever knowledge I want. You're minds in _mine_,'_ she thought as she started to focus on his mind. As usual she was able to push into his and there she was able to see a stream of images, each one a different memory. Just as she was about to concentrate on the one she wanted, without her consent one of the images began to grow, and pull her in. She fought it, pushing against the memory, trying to get it to go away. Rogue gasped, she thought she past this. She thought she had control of the fragments in mind. She didn't think that he could fight her like this. She was the one who was suppose to decide which memories she saw, not him.

_'No one's gonna take this control away from me,'_ Rogue thought strongly as she pushed even harder, but it was no use, soon the memory engulfed her completely and she was surrounded by mud, and dead bodies. She shuddered a she felt the lifeless body in her arms, by was powerless to drop it as she desperately wanted to. _'No,'_ she murmured. She recognized this place. _'Auschwitz,' _she thought panicked. _'I don't want to be here.' _

_'Then leave,'_ Magneto voice screamed as she was tossed from the memory. She came back to herself in the real world. She was laying on the floor several feet away from the door.

_'What- what was that?'_ she asked as she sat up, her hand went to her chest as she caught her breath.

_'Unlike my counterpart I do not approve of that breach of privacy. You will stay out of my mind... or else.'_ he warned.

_'I don't understand,'_ she thought quickly. _'Eric's always been nice to-'_

_'I am not_ your_ Eric, I hold no claim to_ that _name.'_ he said firmly, interrupting her. _'You will receive no assistance or kind words from _me_, Rogue, for I have _no feelings_ for you. I am the man's who's life you _stole_, and I _resent_ you for it as much one, deprived of their freedom, should in such a situation.' _

_'Why the fuck did you even talk to me then?' _she asked annoyed.

_'I will not address a question with such crass language in it. It is disrespectful to both you, and more importantly _me_.' _

She rolled her eyes with a huff. If he was telling the truth, if he was the fragment, then she might have to deal with him on a daily basis for quite some time. It wasn't too long ago that a moment of silence was an uphill battle. Fragment upon fragment screaming at her. The never-ending noise and questions. Did she really want to go back to that? Even if it was only one of the fragments that was screaming at her? Maybe it would be better for her that she get along with this version of Magneto rather than fight with him.

"Why did you even talk to me then?" she repeated her question, forgoing the one word he didn't approve of.

_'Better,' _he said. She noted the satisfiable tone of his voice. '_I was hoping you would assume that I was Eric, and obey me.' _

_'Why would you think I would do what you said if you were Eric?' _she asked.

_'After what you attempted this morning?" _he asked with a laugh._ 'You would be a _fool _not to obey,' _he said.

"This morning,"she muttered to herself, while trying to ignore his laughter. She turned her head towards the clock, and saw that it was 4:38pm. "Whole days almost gone," she said as she stood up, and made her way to the door. A she was reaching for the door-nob, she realized she was glove, and sleeveless. She rolled her eyes as she marched over to the dresser she used and opened the top draw. Inside there was a pair of black gloves, and one of her usual green sheer shirt folded neatly.

Rogue sighed, as she slipped the shirt over her head. She had not been the one to put those articles of clothing there. She could only assume that it had been Eric before he left the institute. She sighed again as she put on one of the gloves.

"I gotta go and make sure Kurt's okay," she muttered to herself as she snatched the other glove out of the draw, and closed it.

_'I thought you were not certain you were even in the institute,'_ he said mockingly.

_'I get it now. Eric left the institute, for real this time, after he forced me to sleep,_' she said as she put on the other glove while she walked towards the door.

_'How can you be so certain?'_ he asked offhandedly

'Because _he left me with _you,' she thought before she turned the door-nob and opened the door. She let out a sigh of relief as she stared out into the familiar hallway. _'Where would Kurt be right now?'_ she asked herself as she walked out of the room, closing the door behind her. '_Maybe the common room...'_ she thought as she started to walk down the hallway.

_'And what precisely was_ that_ comment suppose to mean?'_ he asked irate.

_'Well it's common that people might hang out in the common room, so I'm gonna go and see if my brother there and-'_

_'That is not the comment I was revering to and you know it,_' he screamed in her mind. She couldn't help but smirk.

_'He's gone and he left me with you,'_ she said as she jogged down the stairs.

_'As you have said before,' _he said angry. _'But where is _my_ significance in this situation?'_

_'You're _mean_. You're gonna hate pretty much everything I do, and you won't be shy about letting me know of your disapproval,' _she said as she made her way down to the common room.

_'And?' _he questioned further.

_'Don't you get it?_' she asked incredulously.

_'Enlighten me,' _he said dryly.

_'You're my_ punishment_ for pissing him off,' _she thought. Magneto became silent after that. She knew she should be warily of it. That meant he was contemplating their situation, and whatever conclusion he came to, she was fairly certain she wasn't going to like it. But for the moment she was just thankful for the break from his presence.

Rogue opened the door of the common room and smile when she saw Kitty and Kurt, and Scott sitting on the couch, watching something on the television.

"Mind if I join ya all?" Rogue asked. She felt the need to ask Kurt's permission before sitting down. She wasn't sure if he was still upset about that morning. Kitty turned around and greeted her with a smile.

"Hi, Rogue. Like, of course, you join us," Kitty said with a smile. Rogue walked around the couch and sat down in one of the armchairs nearest Kitty.

"You finish whatever it was you had to do?" Scott asked as he leaned forward in his seat and looked, pasted Kurt and Kitty, over at her.

"Yeah," she said with a nod. "It just took a lot longer than I thought it was going to," Rogue said. She heard Magneto chuckle in her mind. She took a deep breath as she tried to ignore him.

"So, you're done being _alone_ then?" Kurt asked from his seat in between Kitty and Scott on the couch. Kurt kept looking forward at the television, momentarily refusing to move and look at her. She could hear slightest hint of anger in his voice.

"Yeah..." Rogue said quietly. "Kurt, look I... What I said this morning, it came out wrong. I was anger at someone else, and that came out when I was talking to you... I'm sorry," she said as looked away from his face, staring at the floor instead.

"See?" Kitty asked. Rogue looked up just as Kitty turned to look at Kurt. "I told you there was, like, no way she meant to be mean to you," Kitty said. Kurt kept looking forward. 'And you were all like, 'but Rogue doesn't like me,' Kitty said attempting to copy Kurt's ascent; Scott smiled at that.

"Kitty," Kurt exclaimed as he turned to look at her.

"but she, like, totally does. I mean, when was the last time you heard her _apologize_ to anyone? She doesn't do that unless you're, like, super special." Kitty said.

_'Super special?'_ Magneto asked in disbelief. _'Really, where does Charles find these children?' _he asked with disgust in his voice.

_'Would you shut up? I'm trying to have a conversation here,'_ Rogue thought.

"Rogue?" Scott asked, calling for her attention. Rogue glanced up to see that Kurt had turned away from her and Kitty again. He had a hurt expression on his face.

_'Did he say something to me?_' she asked herself.

_'How should I know? We were talking to one another at the time,'_ Magneto commented.

"Is everything okay in your head?" Scott asked, his voice was slightly elevated, not out of anger, he was just trying to get her attention.

_'Guess he use to me drifting in and out of a conversation,'_ Rogue thought. "Kind of. Just, since the whole thing with Magneto the other day, me and the fragment I got haven't been getting along very well. He keeps making comments," Rogue explained.

Yes, Magneto had only made one comment so far, but he was going to make more. She figured she might as well get explaining it out of the way, now. Maybe, they would understand why she was going to be in such a bad mood for the... however long this deal, she had with, Eric lasted. At the very least maybe they would understand that not all of her facial expression were aimed at them. And maybe certain people she cared about wouldn't take everything she did so personally.

Kurt looked up from the television, and glanced at Rogue. Rogue met his gaze and smiled. After a moment, Kurt smiled back.

"So, what kind of things are he saying?" Kurt asked.

"I don't want to get into it. Most of the things he's says they're degrading, rude... annoying," she said with a sigh. "If I could keep from hearing them I would. There's ain't any reason for you guys to hear them too," Rogue explained.

"I don't think there's anything we can do about the fragment in your head, but if the real Magneto keeps trying to mess with you, let us know and we'll give him a piece of our minds," Scott said with a smile.

"And we'll kick his sorry butt," Kurt said enthusiastically. Kitty looked over at Rogue, nodding with a large grin on her face.

"Thanks," was all she could bring herself to say.

_'It only it were that simple, eh Rogue?'_ Magneto asked.

_'If only,'_ Rogue thought sadly as she took a deep breath and forced her self to smile along side her friends. _'I'm gonna have to do this a lot aren't I?'_ she asked.

_'Blatantly lie to those who trust you? I can not see anyway to avoid it. Can you?'_

_'No,'_ she thought sadly as she half listened her friends decide what television show they were going to watch next.

_'You're going to be become an excellent lair, Rogue... But then again, I suppose that is one of my counterpart's means,'_ Magneto said.

_'What do you-'_

"Which would you rather watch, Rogue?" Kitty asked.

"I'm okay with anything," Rogue said quickly with another forced smile._ 'What do you mean by that?'_ she asked once Kitty had turned her attention back to the boys.

'_You're are going to be lying to them on a daily basis. For now you are troubled by the concept, but never-the-less you will precede out of necessity. I wonder, how much time will pass until you are completely desensitized to lying?'_ he asked.

She didn't respond, instead she choose to turn her attention towards the television. In the end the three of them had turned on a sitcom she didn't know the name of. Not that it mattered, she didn't get to focus on the show for more than a few seconds before Magneto continued to whisper painful question.

_'How long, do you think, until dishonesty towards your family comes as easily as breathing?'_ Magneto asked smoothly, before laughing loudly.

It was his laugh that made watching the show in peace impossible. She took another deep breath. She had to keep her body language neutral, appear as through she was watching the show, and attempt to ignore him all at the same time.

It wasn't easy.

_'And then, Rogue... and then after that threshold has been crossed how long... How long,' _he repeated strongly causing her to focus on his words,_ 'until you stop caring about the lies you must tell? And about the people you must tell them to?'_

_'That's not gonna happen,' _she said firmly. _'I'm never gonna stop caring about my family.'_

_'Given that you are the outcast of not one by _three_ broken homes, how certain of that claim can you honestly be?' _

_'I've learned from all those mistakes what makes a family work.'_

'_And what was the one thing that cause your family's past schisms?' _He laughed darkly_ 'Dishonestly, was it not?' _he asked as he continued to laugh as her expense. _'It was your mother's betrayals that broke apart two of your families. First was to your father in the form of an affair. Years later when she lied to you, Rogue, so many times over things so many important things that the trust-pass was _unforgivable_. And now,"_ he said with a laugh, '_and now what must you do to insure your place among this__ family? ... The very thing that destroyed your past happiness, if it ever existed that is... You must lie, Rogue, ... constantly... consistently lie. How long will you be able to endure that, I wonder? How long will it be until you _beg_ my counterpart to take it all away?'_ he asked in a whisper. '_To make you _safe_, and happy once again as you were all those months in his arms,'_ he said in the softest voices. She stood up a little too quickly.

"Rogue?" Scott asked.

"Bathroom," she explained in one word as she turned her face away from him, to keep him from seeing the tears on her face. With effort she managed, not to run from the room as she wanted to, but to walk at just the right pace, to not cause suspicion to herself, out of the common room and down the hall.

_'It won't be too long,' _he said as she entered the bathroom.

"Your wrong," she said purposefully as she looked at her reflection in the mirror.

_'Yet here we are, Rogue. Less than an hour into our coexistence and I have you crying alone a bathroom,'_ he laughed._ 'You won't last the week,' _he said. She took a deep breath as a thought came to mind. She smirked._  
_

_'I'll take that bet,'_ she thought.

_'Excuse me?' _he asked.

_'If I can handle one week of your worst__, you shut up for two.'_

_'And what precisely do I get out of this arrangement if I should win?'_

_'If I can't last the week, then I'll say yes to Eric, and you'll be one step closer finding out what your _counterpart's_ up to. That why you wanted me to open the door earlier, wasn't it? You wanted to know where we were. You want to know what you no longer have access to, what Magneto is planing.'_

_'Maybe so, but I was going to do that either way. Why should I give you the opportunity to heal?' _he asked. She laughed as she stripped off her gloves and placed them on the counter.

_'A minute ago you were so sure that under your duress I wouldn't be able to last a week. Now, you think that you might fail enough that, you ain't willing to stake your coercive talents against little old me. I thought I was just a child in your eyes. Magneto, you didn't have to go looking for excuses to justify your unwillingness. If you don't think you're up to the challenge, that's all you had to say,' _Rogue said as she washed her face so the other wouldn't know she had been crying. He was quiet for a long moment.

_'...Appealing to both, my pride and intellectual vanities to convince me to enter an accord you will likely win?'_ he asked. _'...I think I'm starting to understand what my counterpart see in you,'_ he said quietly. She dried off her hands on the hand towel to her left '_...Untapped potential... I will not be entering the bet, Rogue. Sorry to disappoint,' _he mockingly apologized.

"Whatever," she said dismissively as she put her gloves back on. '_Think you could be quiet long enough so I could enjoy the show?'_ she asked with a sigh.

_'Why should I allow you that comfort?' _

_'Why not?'_ she asked. _'It's not like you have a time limit on when you have to me to say yes to him. Besides you might actually like the show,'_ she suggested as she walked down the hall and back into the common room.

_'Not likely,'_ Magneto said as Rogue retook her seat. Kitty turned to Rogue and gave her a quick smile. Rogue returned it quickly before they both turned their attention back to the television.

_'__'Think I'll do something else for the moment. Enjoy your mind-numbing program,' _Magneto said before fading into the background of her mind.

* * *

And that's it for this chapter. I know short, but the next chapter starts off a week later. And it's going to be a long one, so I cut it off here, and will start writing the next chapter after I write two papers for school. :( Stupid college wanting me to do work...

Anyway, it review time!!!!

Meow114: Thanks for reading!

Rogue hit Magneto because she was sick of him using any weakness she displayed as a change touch her. While Magneto was pulling Rogue into arms (right before she punched him) she was stuck in a memory of feeling utterly helpless. She was reliving all those feelings and was barely conscious of what Magneto was doing in real time, until he kissed her. That contact brought her out of the memory, and she realized that Magneto had used her weakness to take advantage of her for about the 100th time that month, and she was sick and tired or it. So, she wanted to make it clear that he shouldn't do that anymore. Talking hadn't worked. Making him promise not to touch her, hadn't stopped him from trying, (and succeeding ^.^) to seduce her the night before. Physical force was the one of the only options she hadn't explored yet. So, she hit him...

You have my apologizes. I thought I had explained that right, but obviously I didn't. I hope you understand why now. If not, feel free to ask. And I'll try to be more mindful of that in the future and make sure I explain things fully.

Oh and about Rogue learning how to use other powers, she does learn how to control one person's abilities. It just not be in the way you expect! ^.^ But, I'm getting ahead myself. We have a really really really long time before we get there. That's going to be past season four, and we're still in the middle of season two. Keep reading! I hope you won't be disappointed.

LadyNorth76: Thanks! I'm happy to see that you reviewed ^.^ I'm glad you like that Eric was living in the institute. Sorry my updating sucks. I'm trying I swear! I hoped you loved this chapter, and I can't wait to see what else you have to say.

Original1: Sorry, I took so long to update! I know exactly what you're talking about. I should be doing hw right now, but instead I'm having fun updating ^.^ thanks for reading, and I hope you love this chapter!

Seshiru Hikari, Jammie113 and Kouichii: Thank you all for reading and for putting my fic on our story alerts!!!! Hope you all liked this chapter!

Sinner-Pandemonium: Aww. Thank you! I've received compliments before but this is my first marriage proposal! Even if it was given at two in morning after one too many energy drinks and in hindsight you probably didn't mean, it made my day, and helped me get over my writer's block! So, thank you! I really can't wait to hear what else you have to say. Hope you loved this chapter ^.^

Nisiria : Hi you! Thank you for doing everything! ^.^ It really makes my day when I see that someone put both my stories on story alert and favorite story list. As well as add my to their favorite authors list!! So, thank you so much! I hope you loved this new chapter!!!!!


	14. Chapter 14

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Fourteen

Rogue sighed as she laid on her stomach in the guest bedroom she had adopted as her own. She was propped up on her elbow, staring down at the history textbook in front of her. It had been too loud in the common room to get any reading done. Begrudgingly, she had decided to come up stairs and get through a few chapters of textbook. At least in this room she didn't have to wear her long sleeve shirt, and gloves at all times.

Although, the last thing she wanted was to to be alone with only the fragment in her mind for company. But she really did have to read this textbook. She had failed one too many history quizzes because she didn't have the time to read the martial. Before this week she had been too busy learning from Eric how to control her mental powers. Her homework had paled in comparison to talking to Eric. Given her current situation of captivity: it still did.

_'But he ain't here...'_ she thought to herself softly. So, she might as well get on with her life in Bayville.

_'While you reside in Bayville, that is'_ Magneto's fragment pointed out. _'He could remove you at any time.' _

_'No, he can't,'_ she insisted. _'Not unless I tell someone he's holding me captive. I ain't gonna do that.' _

_'You already did, Rogue,' _he said. She rolled her eyes at him.

_'You weren't even there. Don't talk about things you don't understand. I didn't tell the Professor he was here. I _lied_. Just like I was suppose to. Prof figured it out on his own. That ain't my fault. Eric knew that, that's why he gave me that warning. That's why I'm still here. Even after I attacked him.'_

Magneto laughed before he said, '_That utterly ridiculous attack. What were you thinking?'_ he asked, still laughing.

_'I was pis- I was mad at him. It was stupid, I know that now...' _

_'Would you try it again?'_ he asked.

_'Not until I know I could take him,'_ she said. He chuckled.

_'Then we have quite a wait on our hands,'_ he said. She repressed the urge to tell him to fuck off. Her only response to his comment was another deep sigh, which was met with his laughter. That was becoming a very annoying habit of his.

"Could you please stop? I'm trying to read," she said, managing to keep her voice polite, despite the irritation she was feeling.

_ 'Having difficulties, Rogue?' _he asked smugly. '_And here, I was under the impression that you capable of the utter most complex deductive reasoning. Yet now a task as simple as reading is causing __you dismay?' _he asked mockingly. Her hand balled in the sheets, eyes narrowing in contempt. She was alone in this room, she did not have to hide her outwards sides of annoyance. Simply keep herself from lashing out at him.

She had learned quickly that voicing her true emotions only made his assault worse. Aside, from having to keep herself from expressing her feelings out loud to her family, Rogue found that she also had to control her thoughts to keep peace between her and the fragment.

Every waken moment of her life was turning into an elaborate facade.

_'I wish Eric was here,'_ she thought sadly to herself as she stared down at her textbook. At least with him she didn't have to hide her discontent. He allowed her to express herself fully.

Her eyes widened as she replayed what she had just thought. The implications of her comment hitting her hard.

"I did _not_ just think that," she told herself as she panicked.

_'Oh _yes_, Rogue. Yes, you did... and you meant. Every_._ Word,'_ he said. His dark laughter echoed in her mind. '..._But then why shouldn't you prefer his company to mine?' _he asked mockingly. _ 'There are freedoms he allows you that I do not. _He_ is a different type of captor than I. However cruel he may seem to you, he _allows_ you to like his company... You enjoy _conversing_ with him,' _he said. By the perverse way he said the word 'conversing' she knew he wasn't speaking to her and Eric's conversations. He was referring to their more intimate encounters. _'Do not try to deny it,' _he commanded firmly.

"I'm not," she whispered: still attempting to recover from her own thought. His words were only added to her discomfort. Her hand went to her chest as she attempted to calm her breathing. He chuckled at her expense.

_'Then you admit to it all? You would rather my counterpart was here with you?' _he asked. She continued to catch her breath, trying her best to ignore his taunting remarks.

When she didn't answer he decided to continue talking._ 'We both know your answer to this question, Rogue. Further more, we both know why. You were rather endure Eric's company because his is_ easier_ to bare,' _he said. She kept quiet, not wanting to admit that he was correct._ 'Because he _allows_ the conversation to be _pleasant _and _light_. Because he speaks with you using the guise of a _teacher_... Because he offers you all if not _more_ than he_ takes_...'_

_ "_That's not true," she said strongly. '_He just takes and takes.' _

_ 'He _gives_, as well, Rogue. He may denies you your freedom, Rogue, but he offers you more power than you have ever has access to in your life. He might denies you his knowledge in _this _setting, but offers you, in mere exchange of your loyalty, everything he knows. He may denies you the ability to put trust in you family, but offers you an emotional bond that any individual, intelligent enough to understand it, would_ envy._.. But _you_ deny _him_, Rogue. Why?' _he screamed. Rogue winced under the intensity of his voice. '_I ask you..._ why_ do you continue to resist _him_ when he offers you everything. You. Have. Ever. Wanted?' _he yelled at her. He paused for moment,waiting yet again for her to respond.

"Because he's- … capable of-" She stopped midway through her sentence, her voice failing her.

_'Capable of what, Rogue?' _he mockingly asked._ 'Of great _evil_?' _he asked with a dark laugh_. '...of _cruelties_ you would prefer not to mention? Cruelties that your _beloved_ Professor dares not speak of in front of such impressionable young minds,'_ he said before laughing. His laughter slowing changed into a sigh._ 'Oh, Rogue. We are all... _capable_,' _he said soothingly. _'I, my counterpart... you,' _he whispered. A chill ran down her spine._ 'Even Charles... We are _all_ capable of those cruelties that you have had to stand witness to... Nothing_ _will change that undeniable fact... _Nothing_,' _he repeated firmly.

_'And further more-'_ Magneto continued to say, but was interrupted by the sound of knocking on the door.

_'Oh thank god,'_ Rogue thought to herself as she got off the bed.

_'We are not done with this conversation,' _Magneto said.

_'We are for now,'_ she thought relieved as she got to the door, and opened it. She saw Kurt standing in front of her. He was turning his head back and forth, surveying the hallway nervously. "You, okay, Kurt?" Rogue asked.

"Can I come in?" he asked quickly.

"Yeah, sure," she said. As soon as the word 'yeah' left her mouth, Kurt disappeared into a smokey haze.

"Thanks, Rogue," she heard from behind her. "I owe you one," he said as she closed the door and turned around. Kurt was now sitting on the bed, looking at her history textbook. She started to walk towards the bed.

"Kurt, could you pass me my shirt?" she asked while she was walking. He reached over, grabbed the shirt and handed it to her as she got closer to the bed. "Thanks," she said as she lifted it over her head. "So, who are you hiding from?" she asked as she pulled the shirt over her stomach.

"Kitty," he said softly. She could hear the fear in his voice

"So, I'm guessing she's still making muffins," she said with a smile as she reached for her gloves, and put them on.

"Yes," Kurt said as he looked down at his stomach. "This morning muffins still haven't made it through my system. I fear they never will," he said dramatically. It took all of her will power not to laugh. Not at his expense (although she knew he would interpret her laughter that way) But just because she was happy, at this moment. These conversations with her brother were becoming the highlights of her days. With effort, she managed to keep her display of amusement to a simple grin.

"They can't be _that_ bad," she calmed as she took a seat next to him.

"You've never had any?" Kurt asked as he looked over at her. She shook her head no. "Lucky!" he exclaimed. "She's been asking everyone. How do you get away with it? Your her room mate," he said.

"I just told her I shouldn't eat them," she said.

"Why shouldn't you?" he asked curiously.

"Cause, I've heard all the horror stories from you. I've got enough problems as it is. I don't need to add stomach pain to everything else I'm dealing with," she explained.

"You lied?" he asked.

"A little," she admitted. "But Kitty didn't ask _why_ I shouldn't, like you did. Her feelings weren't hurt, and neither was my stomach. Far as I'm concerned it was a win, win situation," she said. Kurt's hand went onto his stomach. He looked like he was in pain.

"I wish I had done that," he said before he ported away. A moment later she saw the door to her bathroom close.

_'Poor, Kurt,'_ she thought to herself.

_'Justifying lies already, Rogue? That didn't take too long, now did it?'_ he asked derisively. She only sighed, once again choosing not to respond to his remarks._ 'Where were we before we were interrupted?'_ he asked. Rogue said nothing. She just continued to stare at the bathroom, waiting for brother to return. _'Not speaking to me while another is in the room is one comfort I have permitted you. Ignoring me, in this childish way, while we are alone is another matter entirely. I will not allow it... I can make your life very difficult, Rogue,'_ he said warningly. _'Every thought you have can become an battle. I can regress all your training. All you have worked so hard to achieve_ gone,_ because you refuse to _speak_ to me.' _

_'We've had this conversation before, Magneto. If I lose control of my powers again, people are gonna notice. No matter how hard I try to hide it. Prof will have to get involved and then he'll learn all about our situation, because _you_ had to make my life _hard_. Eric will have to come back and bring blindspot with him to erase everyone's memories all over again. When that happens who do you think Eric will get angry at this time?' _

_'You will _break_ before that happens.'_

_'If you're so sure, then why have you stopped talking while there are other people in the room?' _ she asked smugly. He didn't respond.

After a few moment of his silence, she smiled. It felt good to win one of their arguments.

_'How long has Kurt been in the bathroom?'_ she asked herself as she got up and walked towards it's door. She knocked. "Kurt, you okay in there?"

Nothing...

"Kurt?" she yelled a little louder.

Still nothing....

_'Kitty's cooking can't be that bad,'_ she thought to herself. "Kurt, I'm worried. I'm coming in," she warned as she opened the door.

He wasn't in there. She started to panic.

'_Where'd he go?' _she asked as she turned out of the room._ 'I didn't hear him leave... But I was talking to Magneto. I don't hear things the right way when I talk to him,'_ she thought as she headed towards the door. She stopped when she realized she didn't have her shoes on. _'Girl relax, he probably fine. You have time to put shoes on... No, I should go and make sure he's okay. What if Eric's done something? ...Why would he?'_ she asked herself. '_He wouldn't have a reason. He probably fine,'_ she thought again. "I'm probably making a big deal outta nothing."

_'Or perhaps you are not. Perhaps you are reacting with just the right amount of worriment,'_ Magneto offered. She almost found herself yelling at him, that he wasn't helping. She sighed. He wasn't suppose to help her. He was suppose to make every situation worse.

_ 'It doesn't make any sense,'_ she told herself as she turned back and walked back into the room.

She stopped at the bed for a moment, and sat down. She reached over to her left and grabbed her shoes: putting them on as quickly as she could.

Fumbling with the lacing, her breath was catching in her throat. She was finding it hard to breath. All she had to do was get her shoes on, and go find her brother. Make sure he was okay, and she couldn't even do that correctly. Tears started to form in the corners of her eyes as she finished the first shoe. She quickly reached for the other, but she must have grabbed at it too quickly, because it feel over, out of her reach. She nearly bursted into tears as she saw it fall. She managed to restrain her tears, as she lowered herself to the floor. Just as she was about to reach out for it again, there was a knock at the door.

She looked up startled. Taking a deep breath, she screamed out "Yes?"

"It's me," Kurt yelled. Rogue let out a sigh of relief. A few tears ran down her face. "Come I come in?" he asked.

"One second, okay?" she said as she got up. She ran to the mirror in the bathroom. Wiped away the water from her face, making sure she didn't look as though she had just been crying._ 'Fuck,' _she thought as she looked at her face. It was all red, and the few tears she did release ruined her makeup. "Come in," she said as she closed the door to the bathroom. "Where'd you go, anyway?" she screamed out as she washed her face. She needed to stall him, as she made herself presentable.

"I told you," he said through the door. "I went to go get something to drink in the kitchen."

"I didn't hear you," she said as she started to reapply her face makeup. "Did you see Kitty?" she asked as she put on more lipstick.

"Yeah," he said.

"Is your stomach, okay?" she asked as put the last of her makeup on.

"Yeah. I was this close to biting into another one of muffins, but then the Professor came and saved me and Scott," Kurt said. She smiled.

"What? Did he band muffin making in the Institute?" she asked as she took one last look at herself in the mirror. She looked fine.

"I wish," he exclaimed. "No, he wants everyone to meet him in the library," Kurt said as Rogue walked towards the door. It was then she realized she only had one shoe on. She looked down at her foot and sighed. Magneto chuckled.

"Why?" she asked as she lowered herself to the floor to take off her shoe.

"He didn't say," Kurt said.

_'Wait,' _she thought as she was about to take off her shoe. _'How am I gonna explain why one of my shoes is in the bathroom?'_ she asked herself with a sigh. "Kurt, I'm meet you down there, okay?" she asked.

"I can wait," he said.

"You go ahead. I'm gonna be another minute or two," she said.

"Are you sure?" he asked.

"Yeah, go ahead. If I'm late then you can full me in later, okay?" she asked.

"Not a problem, sis," he said. She smiled as she heard the bamf sound his powers make as he teleports. She stood up off the floor, and opened the door to the bathroom.

Magneto laughed before he said, _'Are you always going to panic whenever one of your friends disappeared for a mere moment?' _he asked mockingly.

_'I overreacted,'_ Rogue thought as she walked out of the room, and to the bed.

_'Yes, you did,' _he said. _'You nearly broke under that self-induced stress,' _he pointed out.

_'He disappeared, he- did you hear him say he was gonna go down stairs?' _she asked as sat down near her shoe.

_'No, I did not,'_ he answered. She didn't know if she believed him or not._ 'I wonder how you will react when the _real _disappearances start,'_ he said.

_'Real?'_ she questioned before she could stop herself.

'Wel-'

"No," she said strongly, interrupting him. "Don't answer that. You only said to make me worry _more_. You don't know _anything_ about what he planning. You couldn't," she said quickly. She took a deep breath: calming herself. "I don't know how long I can do this for," she admitted as she leaned her head against the side of the bed, closing her eyes.

_'You don't _have_ to do this at. All. You can _end_ your suffering at _any _point,'_ he stressed. '_You know the phone number to call. He _will_ pick up. He _will_ come and get you. He will make you _safe_.'_

"He's the one I'm afraid of," she said.

_'Because you choose to be his _enemy_. Choose to be his friend instead, Rogue. Then you will have nothing to fear.' _

"And my family? I just leave them behind to deal with Eric? You're saying I should abandoned them?" she asked in disbelief.

_'Rogue, ask yourself this. What _good_ are you doing them here? Would they be any worse off if you were not here? Any better? The answer is neither. You neither add, nor weaken them. Rogue, the only one you _torment, _by staying,_ _is yourself. The only person you can _save, _by leaving,_ _is yourself. _Your_ decisions only effect _you_.' _

With a sigh she stood up.

"You're wrong. Me leaving would effect Kurt... a lot," she said as she finished lacing up her shoe. She stood up. "I'm staying, for him," she said firmly as she walked out of the door.

_'You will regret that decision,'_ he warned.

_ 'It's my decision to regret.'

* * *

_

Okay, so it's been over a month, and the chapter is the shortest one I've written in quite some time. In my defense, I have two jobs, an independent study, and I'm going to school full time! I'm lucky I have time eat! So, yeah that long chapter I promised you all is coming. After I write 8 papers for school. They're all due by Dec 2. So maybe I'll find a few moments, like I did today and last night to write another chapter. Honestly, I have no idea if that's going to happen. I hope it does.

For the record, Reviews are the light of my life! The more reviews I get, the more likely I will be willing to lose a few hours sleep to write something for all you lovely people. :HINT HINT:

You know what, true believers, I'll make you lot a deal. If I get **Fourteen** reviews within the next week: I will work my ass off to get you guys another chapter by the end of the month. That's right, I'm putting the power in your hands! Want me to lose some sleep in a totally fulfilling way? Write a review!!!!! Hopefully, 13 other people will agree with you and will do the same.

Speaking of which.

Meow114: Thanks! I kept that going this chapter too. I think I'm going to stick to it! Thanks for the review, and sorry I took so long to update.

Sinner-Pandemonium: Aww, thanks!!!!!! Personally, I love seeing what you'll come up with in your reviews too. Tomato?

I'm looking forward to your next review!!!

LadyNorth76: I am so sorry I took so long to update!!!!! I had to write so many paper. SO MANY PAPER!!!!!!! AHHHHHHHH... I'm going to try and update again before new years. Thank you for reading and reviewing!!! I love seeing your name in mailbox!!!

PrincessKitty-Chan: You know who you are... You know what I have to you... I was sitting next to you when you wrote all those reviews... I love you forever and ever and ever and ever... and ever! :Waves frantically with both hands: Come back to college more often, woman!

Kay, bye... ^.^

RogueNya: Hey!!! Sorry, she not leaving with him. At least not yet!!!! Thanks for the review!!! Can't wait to read the next one!


	15. Chapter 15

Hey all! Since I did not get all 14 reviews are requested I did not post by the end of the month. However, the will to write this chapter overrode any and all desires to write the five papers that are all due on Monday (Kill me now!). So, yes you guys get a new chapter, and I, officially, have to stop procrastinating.

That being said, **I'm not responding to reviews this chapter! **

I'm sorry, but I have to write five papers in five days.

Speaking of reviews:

Thank you to all ten of you who answered my request by reviewing. You all are awesome! Please do not let the fact that I'm not responding to you all individually keep you from reviewing! I love what each and every one of you wrote! Thank you all!

Plus, I love reviews! The more of them I get the more likely I am to update faster. Case in point: ten reviews, I give you guys a update faster than I'm supposed to. Imagine what I would do if I got 15 reviews!!!!!! :HINT HINT:

Okay, no more delays!

Enjoy the chapter!

* * *

Taunting Repartee

Chapter 15

Rogue stepped into the Professor's office. Once inside, she took a seat on one of the wooden chairs. Scott was seated in the other lone chair, and Kitty, Kurt, Jean and Evan were all seated on the couch. All of them turned their attention to the Professor as he approached them.

"Professor, what's all this about?" Jean asked.

"I'm afraid we have an emergency of sorts on our hands."

_'No shit,'_ Rogue thought, restraining herself from rolling her eyes.

"What emergency?" Scott asked.

"A patient of mine has gone missing," The Professor said.

_'He has patients?'_ Rogue asked herself.

_'Apparently so,'_ the fragment of Magneto offered.

"As some of you may know I have been working with a young woman, Wanda, with control of her powers over the past year or so. Unfortunately, I have not had much progress. Her anger keeps her from being able to control her abilities. However, that has not kept me from trying to help her and so I've had numerous sessions with her at the hospital. The poor child is a tortured mind and when you add that to the power of her mutant ability... well, she becomes very dangerous," said the Professor.

That name, the situation it sounded so familiar. She recalled from Eric's memories him leaving a small child, his daughter, at an institution. It was one of the cruelest things he had ever done.

'_Relax,_' Rogue reprimanded herself. _'There's no way he talking about Eric's daughter. I'm just being-'_

"Her father," The Professor said, bringing Rogue out of her own thoughts. "He abandoned her there years ago when she became unmanageable," the Professor said.

'_Okay, so he is talking about _that_ Wanda,'_ Rogue thought. "So now, what?" she asked. "Maybe she just ran away?" she asked. _'It's what I'd do if I escaped from seven years of imprisonment,' _she thought.

"No, I sense the hand of someone else in this. Someone else who may be planning to use those dangerous powers of hers... against us," he said.

'_Well, that's just great,'_ Rogue thought sarcastically as she forced herself to mirror the looks of surprise that surrounded her.

"Professor, what exactly are her abilities?" Scott asked.

"Wanda's powers alter probability through hexes. Her powers increase the probability of unlikely phenomena," The Professor said.

"Like what?" Kitty asked.

"Spontaneous combustion of inflammable objects, decaying of organic material, deflection of objects... and mutant powers," he explained.

"_Our_ powers?" Scott asked. The Professor looked over at him.

"I'm afraid so," The Professor confirmed.

"So, what are we gonna do about it?" Rogue asked.

"At the moment... nothing," The Professor said.

"But, Professor, if she's as dangerous as you say she is than we should-"

"I understand your concern, Scott," the Professor said interrupting him. "Everyone," he said as he looked at each of the X-Men in the room, "but at the moment. There is nothing that we can do. I will be working with Cerbro, starting tonight, attempting to find the girl. I am simply informing you of the situation at hand, so that no one will be caught unaware."

_'Wouldn't that be nice,'_ Rogue thought to herself as she sighed.

"I will inform you all, when I know more. For now, it's late, and you all have school in the morning," he said signaling towards the door.

_'Meetings over then,_' she thought as she stood up like the rest of the team. _'But what if she's with her father? Would she even consider going with him after every thing he's done?' _she asked herself as she watched her teammates walk out of the room. He had just spent over a month teaching Rogue how to control her mental powers. Maybe during that time he had come up with a way to help his own daughter. Maybe he had realized that helping someone he had no real connection with, while his own flesh and blood rotted behind bars was just plain wrong. _',,, No, that's not it,' _she thought with a stifled laugh as she slowly walked towards the door. A look of dread crossed her face. _'Maybe he remembered just how good his telepaths are at making bad attitudes go away,'_ she thought as she reached the door. That seemed like the most likely scenairo.

_ 'I don't think he put her up in that house of his, but it's worth a look... But what about Eric?' _Rogue asked herself. She replayed the terms of their agreement in her mind._ 'I didn't learn about this through any conversation we've had, and I'm not gonna say anything about the mansion,'_ she said before smiling._ 'I can talk to the Professor about this,'_ she thought as she turned to at him.

"Rogue is there something you wanted?" The Professor asked curiously.

"Yeah," she said as she quickly crossed the room, and took a seat on the chair Scott had been sitting on. She was much closer to the Professor now. "You remember that phone number I gave you?" she asked as she looked over at him.

"...No..." he said startled, as he moved away from her, turning his back to her. "I'm afraid you will have... you have to remind me," he said.

"How could you forget?" she asked confused. _'Unless Eric erased that conversation too,'_ she thought panicked. '_Why would he do that?'_ she asked herself as she looked down._ 'Professor was supposed to call Eric after we had talked. I mean, unlike Eric messed up that conversation to the point that he needed to erase it, and the cause of making the call? But why would he allow that? ... I don't understand... Eric's better at this... at deception than I am. There's no way that he-'_

"Rogue," she heard the Professor scream.

"Yeah?" she asked as she looked up at him. "Why did you scream?" she asked annoyed before she shook her head. "You said it softer before screaming, but I didn't hear," she said answering her own question. "Sorry," she said as he gaze met his.

"It's... it's alright," he said startled, wide eyed.

'_Why does he look surprised? This ain't the first time he's seen me drift out of a conversation. Not even close,'_ she thought confused. _'How much could Eric have erased?'_ she thought panicked. _'I gotta think this through, without an audience that has no idea what I'm talking about.'_

"Rogue, I must apologize-" he started to say.

"I'm the one who should be apologizing," she said interrupting him. "You're right. It's really late, and I've got a danger room session in the morning. How about we talk about this another time?" she asked. _'Say yes, say yes, say yes.'_

A smile came to his face. She thought she saw a hint of relief in his facial expression as well.

"Very well," he said. "Another time," he said as she stood up. She quickly walked to the door. It took effort not to run. "Good night, Rogue," he said just as her hand was gripping the doorknob. She forced herself to twist her head to look at him.

"Night," she said with fake smile: she had perfected over the past few days.

She fled the room, closing the door behind her.

_'What the hell is going on?'_ she screamed in her mind as she walked briskly down the hall.

_'Well, let review, shall we?'_ the fragment said gleefully. _'My daughter is out of the hospital. Most likely by my counterpart's hand, by means of _mental reconstruction," he said before chuckling._ 'Charles, ever observant, is convinced, of all things, that _someone_ is going to use her, rather formable, abilities against all of you." _He paused again to laugh_. _

God, she wanted to hit him...

_'And to top off all of this _wonderful_ news, that tiny bit of information about Wanda, is just about _all_ that Charles is aware of at the moment,'_ he said before falling into another fit of laughter.

She wanted to hit something.

But it was late... everyone knows that she wasn't the danger rooms biggest fan. If she, all of a sudden, started engaging in late night sessions people would ask questions. Questions she couldn't answer right now.

_'Maybe one of the gyms...'_ she thought as she headed for the elevator.

* * *

Twenty minutes later, Rogue was, in sweat pants and a tank tops, in one of the Institutes many sublevel gyms: Imaging Magneto's face was on the everlast bean bag as she punched it as hard as she could. She had been at this for serval minutes now, and had worked up a sweat.

_'Does that help?'_ Magneto asked.

_'Yeah, it does,'_ she thought as she kicked the bag.

_'Your situation?'_ he asked. She paused, taking a second to catch her breath. _'Honestly?'_ he asked.

"No," she said bitterly. "... It doesn't change a _thing_," she said before punching the bag.

_'Then why do it?'_ he asked.

"Why not?" she asked him before she resuming her assault on the black bag in front of her.

_'There are more productive activities you could be engaging in,' _he said.

_'Like what?_' she asked.

_'You wish to learn the truth of things. You want answers. There is only one place you will get them from. There is only one _person_ you can get them from.' _

_'You want me to call him,'_ she thought as she ached her leg up for another kick.

'_Why not?'_ he asked. She paused her attack.

"I am _not_ saying yes to him," she said.

_'That is not what I suggested,'_ he said.

"This time," she added as she walked over to the bench, and picked up the water bottle she had retrieved from the kitchen. "So, what? You want me to call him, and then what?" she asked. She twisted the top off of the bottle, and brought it to her lips. _'Talk about the weather, somehow casually bringing up the Professor's recent memory loss?'_ she asked as she took a large sip of water. "Yeah, that'd go over well," she said before leaning down and grabbing her towel. Wiping the sweat off of her face. She took another large sip.

_'You're a smart girl. You could be subtle.'_

"Not subtle enough. He'd see through it in a heartbeat... the only thing I would gain from that conversation is a new list of things I ain't allowed to talk about..." She took another sip of water_.'He might come back,'_

_'Take my place.'_

"You took his," she corrected.

_'You would like that wouldn't you?" _he asked, ignoring her statement_. 'To be rid of me?'_ he asked.

'_Just because he comes back, doesn't mean that you would go away,' _she thought as she took one last sip of water, emptying the bottle. She headed for the door, throwing the bottle in the trash-bin on her way out. She walked down the hallway.

_'Do you honestly believe that he would want both of us speaking with you at the same time?' _he asked a she stepped onto the elevator.

"Maybe..." she said as she watched the doors close. "Maybe not, but I _don't_ know. And if it's a choice between one or two of you..." she said as the lift got to her floor. _'It's not worth the risk,'_ she thought as she stepped out of the elevator, and walked towards her room.

'_You can not abstain from taking action forever,'_ he said.

_'Watch me,'_ she thought as she walked into the guess bedroom she had adopted as her own. Tonight she didn't feel like putting up a pretense in front of Kitty. She just wanted to go to sleep.

And so she did...

* * *

_All of sudden her breathing was heavy, and there was darkness..._

_Her eyes opened, she was running down one of the many hallways in the institute. She felt a hand on her arm. _

_"You must come with me," Eric's voice said._

_She spun her head around as she ran. _

_There was no one behind her, no one in front of her._

_All Rogue could hear was the lumping of her own heart, and her jagged breath._

_Her eyes closed, only for a moment..._

_She opened them, she was standing in the infirmary. She looked down. There was a needle in her hand. She stared at the needle confused. _

_"I need it now, Anna," Eric said. She looked up. Eric was standing next to her. He was holding out his hand. "Give me the syringe." She looked passed him. His body was blocking most of her view, but she could still see part of a leg. _

_A blue leg..._

_Her heart raced, as tears ran down her face. _

_She blinked..._

_She felt hands on her body, something cold at her back. She opened her eyes. Eric had her pushed up against a wall of the institutes' elevator. It was moving downwards. She stared up into his cold blue eyes. _

_"Anna, stop fighting me," he commanded. _

_"What did you do to him?" she screamed as she struggled against his hold. _

_Her eyes closed..._

_Darkness..._

_"He is not your concern at the moment," she barely heard Eric say._

_Her eyes opened. She was in the kitchen, staring out the window. She glanced up. She saw the Professor running away from the institute. _

_Confusion consumed her. _

_The Professor ran towards the front gate, and jumped into the air doing a flip over it. He continued to run past the gate, and out of her view. _

_She looked down, there was broken glass and water surrounding her on the floor. _

_Darkness once again..._

_"What do you want from me?" she called out into the darkness._

_"Absorb him, Anna. It is the only way," Eric said. _

_Her eyes opened, she was standing in front of the door to the Professor's office. She looked down at her hands. She gasped. _

_There was blood on her fingers. _

_"Now," Eric said. She quickly turned around. _

_He wasn't there. _

_"Where's the Professor?" she screamed.  
_

_"It is too early for you to know all of this," She heard Eric say from behind her. She spun around. Now she was in the subbasement. _

_He wasn't there either..._

_"Do you wish to bare more secrets?" Eric asked as his hand gripped her shoulder. _

_"No," she said as she turned her head to look at him. "But, what choice do I have?" _

_"None," he said. _

_Her eyes closed again..._

_"Trust me," Eric whispered in her ear._

* * *

Her eyes flew open as she sat up in bed.

_'What the hell was that?'_ she asked as she took deep breaths.

_'It is called a nightmare,'_ the fragment offered dryly. '_I would think you would be used to them by now,' _he said.

_'I am,'_ she thought. "I am use to it... But not that kind of nightmare," she said as she got up, and headed into the bathroom. "My nightmares are usually stuff that's happened," she turned on the light, and sauntered to the sink. "That was different," she said as she turned on the water. She washed her face. The cold water feeling good on her face. _'Very different,'_ she thought. '_It felt like...'_ she thought as she dried her face off with the towel that was hanging on the rack next to the sink.

She replayed some of the dream in her mind. One image stood out.

The blue leg...

"I'm gonna make sure Kurt's okay," she said as she ran of the bathroom, and bedroom.

_'Do you honestly think-'_

_"I don't know what to think,' _she thought as she ran down the hallway. She slowed her pace as she got to Kurt's door. She slowly turned the doorknob and quietly opened his door a crack. She peered inside.

There he was asleep in his bed: safe and sound. She let out a sigh in relief.

_'Are you satisfied, now?'_ Magneto asked annoyed.

_'I guess,' _she thought as she closed the door, careful not to make any noise. _'Dream just... it didn't feel right,'_ she thought.

_'Too real?'_ he asked her as she made her way to her room.

'_No... that's the problem. Everything happened in clips. I kept switching from one room to another. It felt... fake,' _she said as she walked into her bedroom.

_'Most nightmares do,'_ he said.

_'Not mine,'_ she stressed as she got into bed. She pulled the covers over her body. _'Mine always felt real. That's why they were scary.'_

_'This one frightened you as well,'_ he pointed out.

_'For a different reason,'_ she said as she closed her eyes.

_'And that is?'_ he asked curiously.

"Like I'm gonna tell you," she said. She took a deep breath, as she prayed for dreamless sleep.


	16. Chapter 16

6/26/11

Hey; I decided to go back and change the time continuity errors of the fic.

* * *

It's been a whole year! Woooo! One year has passed since I started this fan fic! Today, one year ago, I got the balls to post something I wrote and the rest, well...

It's been a year and we've come through 16 chapters or Taunting Repartee, and 6 chapters of Operation Repartee. That's 22 chapters of awesome in one year! Well that's almost two chapters a month. By this date next year I will attempt to post 24 chapters. Two chapters a month! That's my goal, anyway. I'm also going to try and be a little more consistent with my posting. So, no more month long gaps. I'm going to try anyway.

So, I take it that the reason I received less reviews for chapter fifteenth is the reason stated in the only two I got. Okay, I get it, you guys want more Eric and Anna time.

Ask and ye shall receive...

I was originally going to play out the next chapter in the Bayville mall and end it with that something you all want. However, given the demand I will make that part of the chapter shorter, and get to Eric and Anna talking a lot sooner than I had planed.

As you all probably realized already, during the last chapter we were in the middle of the episode Hex Factor. This chapter starts right after the episode ends, on the car ride home. There are a few plot points I need to address, which will take the form of Rogue's Flashbacks.

If your not too sure of what happened in the episode, I suggest rewatching it because I'm not going to go over everything. The site wouldn't let me post an actual link. It's on Marvel's youtube channel. They've uploaded most of the episodes of X-Men evolution into it.

I think that's everything, so without further adieu.

Enjoy ^.^

* * *

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Sixteen

Rogue sat in the back of the X-Van on the trip back from the mall. She looked around at all the unhappy faces matching her own. Kitty was sitting next to her middle seating of the Van. Kurt and Evan were behind them in the very back, Scott was in the front driving and Jean was sitting next to him in the passenger seat.

No one was talking. Everyone was too upset about the fight at the mall. This was the first time the X-Men had lost battle.

_'At least ones that their aware of,'_ she thought with a sigh. Not one of them were taking the loss well.

But she had to admit, it was refreshing not having to hide her discontent...

She frowned at the thought, feeling guilty for having it. Just because she was miserable this last week, didn't mean she wanted everyone to feel that way. But it really was nice not having to hide her feelings. She only wished they were feelings of joy, rather than sadness.

She stared out the window as she replayed the event of the night in her head:

Everything seemed find in the mall at first. Rogue had walked up to the second floor, and searched, just as Scott had asked her too. Even as the Brotherhood started to attack, everything was still okay. Jean was easily able to handle Lance. Scott was helping, until Toad took his visor, which was when she stepped in, absorbed toad and returned the visor to Scott. Blob had tried to attack them, but Scott had taken him out in one blast. Everything was fine.

Until Wanda showed herself...

After that it was chaos.

_Rogue felt the blast of energy hit her as she fell to the ground. Quickly, she managed to look up, to see fire heading in her directing. She raced to her feet as she ran away. Moving under the balcony, she watched as the fire rose into the air. Thankfully away from her. She let out a sigh of relief, and then turned her attention towards Wanda. _

_Kitty was behind her, halfway through the ground, screaming, "Help! I can't move." Rogue started to run out from the cover of the balcony, but she felt a hand on her arm pulling at her. Keeping her from leaving the area. She quickly spun around. _

_But no one was there..._

"_...Eric?" Rogue asked anxiously as she looked around. There was no one near her. At least no one she could see. _

_There was a loud explosion above her. Her eyes widened as the balcony started to break apart above her. She gasped as one piece landed to her right as she attempted to ran that way. She turned to her left attempted to run, but the landing there was falling as well, blocking her path. She looked up, her breath caught in her throat, as a steel beam was quickly approaching her. _

_Her eyes widened even more when the steel beam stop moving: hovering safely ten or so feet above her head. Her eyes glanced across the mall. She saw Jean save Scott from falling balcony on the other side of the mail. There was no way she was holding this beam up too. _

_Rogue took a deep breath_

"_Could you move that beam blocking my way... please?" she asked as she looked around. A second later the beam shifted to the side, giving her enough move to escape. And so she did. Running out from under what was left of the balcony, and joining her teammates as they ran out of the mall. _

Rogue let out a sigh as she stared out of the window.

_'I absorbed toad,' _Rogue realized. '_He would know, what's going on,' _she thought with a smile. She took a deep breath as she searched for his mind. Closing her eyes, she brought his fragment to the surface. A mess of moving pictures laid out in her mind. With effort she managed to focus on the events of this day.

_'Guess who's back,' she saw, as toad, as her Mother stood in the front door of the brotherhood house. _

She pulled herself out of the memory as she felt the van come to a abrupt stop.

"Why'd we stop?" she turned to ask Kitty.

"Something's wrong with the van," Kitty answered.

"Scott, what is it?" Jean asked from the passenger front seat. Scott turned the keys in the ignition.

"I don't know," he said. "It won't start up again," he said with anger as he hit his fist into the steering wheel.

"Scott, calm down," Jean said softy.

"At least we're, like, not in the middle of the street," Kitty offered. Jean gave Kitty a reassuring smile as she pulled out her communicator.

"Yeah, Scott. Good thing you pulled over," Kurt said. Scott wordlessly got out of the car, slamming the door behind him. They all watched him stand in front the van and lift the hood up.

"Professor?" Jean asked into the communicator.

"Man, this sucks," Evan exclaimed to Kurt.

"It's not that bad... If Scott can fix the blackbird, he can fix a van, right?" Kurt asked.

"Storm?" Jean asked as she held the communicator up to her mouth. "The van broke down on the way- … Hello?" she asked.

"Jean, what's wrong?" Rogue asked.

"I don't know. No one's answering," Jean said. "There must be something wrong with it. Does anyone else have theirs?" she asked. Rogue watched Kurt feel his pockets. Rogue let out a sigh.

"I forgot mine at the institute," Rogue said.

"I don't have mine either," Kurt said. "I know I brought it with me."

"Mine's gone too. I, like, must have dropped out of my pocket during the fight," Kitty said.

"Maybe when we were in the tree," Kurt said.

"Yeah, maybe," Kitty said.

"Evan?" Jean asked.

"Nope," he said shaking his head.

"We're not that far from the institute. Kurt could you teleport back and drive another car here to pick us up?" Jean asked.

"Yeah, no problem," he said.

"I'll come with you," Kitty said with a smile. He smiled back.

"Tell Scott before you go," Jean said. He nodded as he teleported out of the van.

"See you later," Kitty said as she opened the door. Rogue eyes widened as she watched Kitty turn to get out of the van. Eric was standing just outside of the van. She watched Kitty get out of the car. Rogue sucked in a breath as she watched Eric get into the van, and sit next to her: all before Kitty closed the door. Rogue stared across at Eric, wide eyed.

"It is _still_ too early for you to know all of this," he said gently.

She just stared at him in shock.

"I was going to leave you alone, Anna, until my plans for Bayville had come to fruition. I was going to let you live your life without me, as _you_ desired. I t_ired_ to keep you in the dark. But your review of the situation, your very intellect has forced my hand," he finished with a sigh.

She opened her mouth to speak, but thankfully remembered that that wasn't a good idea.

_'Eric-'_ she thought.

"We will talk at the institute," he said interrupting her, softly. "For now, be silent," he said as he looked straight ahead at Scott. She turned to look as well. He had gotten back into the van, and was trying the to start the van again. Jean let out a sigh in relief as it started up.

"Let's go home," Jean said, looking at Scott. Scott started to drive. Eric looked down at her. She almost gasped as she felt a hand on hers. She looked down to see Eric's hand on top of hers. His fingers intertwined with hers. She guessed he was trying to comfort her: not that it was working.

"Anna, try not to look as though you're terrified," Eric said softly.

_'But, I am...' _she thought as she forced herself to look out the window. She took a deep breath. _'You gonna tell me I have nothing to be afraid of?'_ she asked.

"I wish I could," he said sincerely.

* * *

Twenty minutes later she was walked into her room. Eric's hand was on her shoulder, guiding her. He had insisted upon holding onto her since they had left the car. She rolled her eyes at the thought. It's not as though she was going to try and escape. Where would she go? How far would he let her get? Her guess about two inch.

The door to the guess bedroom closed behind them.

_'Can I talk now?'_ she asked annoyed.

"Of course," he said as he let go of her shoulder. He walked passed her, as he took off his coat. Folding it, it laid it on top of the dresser. She walked over to her dresser and pulled out a pair of her PJ's. With a sigh she walked towards the bathroom. "So, ask," he said.

"I don't have anything to say," she said as she turned to look at him. "I can't talk about anything we talk about to other people. So, I ain't gonna. I just wanted to know if I could," she said before turning to walk into the bathroom.

"What you know or do not know is, at this point, irrelevant. You will not be able to inform anyone of anything. At least not until I am done in Bayville. So," he said as he sat down on the bed, "you might as well satisfy that endless curiosity of your," he said with a smile.

"I'm gonna take a shower," she said as she walked into the bathroom, closing the door behind her. She locked it, just to make it absolutely clear that she didn't want him to come in.

* * *

About an hour later, Rogue was looking at her reflection in the mirror. She had taken a long shower, got dressed, and blow dyed her hair. She had taken her time while doing each activity, but to her it didn't seem as though enough of it had passed.

With a sigh she opened the door to the bathroom, and stepped out. Eric was sitting up on the right side of the bed. His back against a pillow on the bed-frame. He was reading a book: The Prince. He looked up as she exited the bathroom, closing the book. He turned to put it on the nightstand to his right, before turning his gaze back towards her. She now had his undivided attention.

She moved to her left slightly until she could lean against the wall.

"So, now what?" she asked.

"That's entirely up to you, my dear," he said. She didn't say anything. "We could talk, or something else." he said. A small smile graced his face as he looked at her. She looked away from him as she rolled her eyes. "We could sit here in unbearable silent. Not my first choice," he told her. "Or we could go to sleep," he said.

"In the _same_ bed?" she asked raising an eyebrow as she met his gaze again.

"We have before," he said.

"Last time you got in a bed with me, you took _advantage_ of me," she said as she crossed her arms over her chest.

"Anna-"

"I was tired," she said strongly interrupting him. "It had been such a long day. You knew that, but keep pushing and pushing and pushing until I couldn't _think_ anymore," she yelled. "I didn't think it was a good idea. Not after everything I learned that day. It was too much. But you, kept..."

"It was not my intention-"

"That was _exactly_ your intention," she said interrupting him. "You knew what you doing. Don't _insult_ me by pretending otherwise," she said. He stared at her for a moment, before sighing.

"So, I won't. You have my apologies," he said. "...When you said that all you wanted to do was pull me closer, I had thought it was the situation that was keeping you from going forward with your desires."

"It was," she said. "...My body wanted it, but my mind knew it was a bad idea. By the time you were holding me, Eric... my mind wasn't working right anymore. So, my body got what it wanted. But it wasn't what _I _wanted."

She looked away from him, feeling awkward just standing there, but she wasn't going to sit on that bed.

"If it will make you feel more comfortable, I will sleep on the floor," he offered. She glanced up at him surprised.

"_Seriously?_" she asked skeptically.

"Yes," he said.

"...Promise?" she asked.

"I give you my word," he said.

"...Okay," she said quietly.

"So, that's one issue we've discussed. How many more do we have to get through?" he asked with a small smile.

"I've lost count," Rogue said honestly as she walked over to the bed. She took a seat, as far away from him as possible. "I wanna say this out loud." She looked him in the eye. "We are _not _doing anything sexual tonight. You are _not _seducing me. If we end up doing anything like that tonight I..." she let her voice trail off as she looked down at her hands. She had meant to finish the sentence with a threat. But there was nothing she could threaten him with. She was helpless.

"I understand," he said gently as he leaned forward, searching for her eyes. She met his gaze.

"But do you accept it?" she asked.

"I promised not to sleep on the bed, did I not?" he asked.

"Yeah," she agreed, "but you didn't promise not to try and convince me that having sex on the _floor_ would be a good idea," she pointed out.

"Or against a wall either," he added with a smile, looking away from her.

"Eric!" she reprimanded. He chuckled.

"Forgive me, my girl, the image was," he paused as he glanced back up at her, "...quite inspiring," he said breathlessly. She felt her face blush: wishing he would stop looking at her like that. "In my defense, _you_ are the one who brought up the topic... as usual" he said with a grin. She just glared at him with narrowed eyes."...What else would you like to discuss?"

"Nothing," she whispered. "What's the point?" she asked annoyed. "It's not like I can do anything," she said in defeat, looking down at her hands. "It's _irrelevant_ what I know," she said bitterly.

"It terms of speaking to _anyone else_ about the situation. But having knowledge is never irrelevant," he said as she looked up at him. "_Never_," he repeated strongly as their eyes met.

"There's a lot I'm confused about right now," she said.

"Then we will take one issue at a time until you are no longer confused," he said with a small smile. She watched the smile on his face: it only served to irritate her.

"Why are you happy right now?" she asked.

"Since you absorbed me in New York we have had, at the very least, three conversations a day. For three weeks you and I shared a bed," he said smiling openly, "this bed," he said. She turned away from him blushing slightly. "We were more or less inseparable for almost two months times, Anna. And I found, that after all that time with you, that being apart for even five days... it is not something I desire to do again," he said. She looked back up at him. She saw compassion in his eyes. "I've missed you, my love."

She quickly got off of the bed, turning her back to him.

"Anna-"

"This is weird, Eric... You claim to love me but... here we are in my bedroom," she said as she turned around to face him. "Your holding me here against my will, _as usual_." she said. He smirked as he stood up.

"A necessary evil," he said as walked towards her. "The only other option was to keep reordering you memory."

"That dream I had last night?" she asked.

"Was not, in fact, a dream at all," he said as he sauntered closer to her.

"What did you do to Kurt?" she asked warningly, as she unconsciously took a step away from him.

"I did nothing to your brother. It was not his leg you saw..." he said, as she raised an eyebrow. She pulled the image of the blue leg to mind. Why hadn't she taken a closer look at it before. It was much wider than Kurt's.

"Mr. McCoy," she realized breathlessly.

"Correct."

"What did you do to him?" she asked.

"I had his memory, of the latter part of the night, erased, after I persuaded you to help me save his life."

"Why was his life in danger?"

"He had a conversation with Mystique that ended rather badly," he said as he took a step closer to her.

"Why would he talk to Mystique- forget I asked that," she said interrupting herself. "Who was she disguised as?" she asked.

"Do you truly want to know?" he asked as he took another towards her. They were only a foot apart now. She turned her gaze up to met his. "Do you wish to bare more secrets?"

"You asked me that last night," she said.

"What was your reply?"

"No, but what choice do I have? You said 'None.' Then I woke- ...Then I passed out. So, last night erasing my memory was fine, but less then a day later it's no longer an option?" she asked as she crossed her arms over her chest. "Eric, what gives?"

"It was the second time within twenty-four hours that you had discovered something profound. I knew that you discoveries could only be delayed, not prevented," he said. She huffed.

"So, you want to be the one who control when, where, and how I get this information."

"Precisely," he said.

"Do you want me to know who Mystique was impersonating?"

"Not yet, but soon," he promised. She looked away from him as an image from her dream came to mind: _The Professor, jumping over the gate. _

_"Where's the Professor?" she screamed._

She pulled herself out of the memory as she looked up at him.

"The Professor. She was impersonating the Professor," she said strongly.

"Or, you could put it together it now," he said.

"So, where was the Professor when Mystique was talking to Mr. McCoy?" she asked as she stared up into his eyes. He didn't say anything but there was look in his eyes: pity. "Where's the Professor now?" she asked quietly.

"He's alive," he said as he put his hands on her arms, he rubbed gently. "but not in Bayville. He can not interfere with the events in Bayville from where he currently is."

"You're not gonna tell me where."

"No, I am not. Know that he is safe, healthy. I promise," he said as he rubbed her arms. She gazed her gaze downwards. "Do you have other questions?" he asked.

"Yeah, just... it's been a long day."

"Tired?" he asked.

"I'm exhausted," she admitted as she looked up at him. She finally realizing how close they were, that he was touching her. "Eric, I-" she started to say, but he interrupted her.

"Shhh," he hissed as he lowered his head towards hers. She couldn't help but stare into his eyes. There was something about them, almost hypnotic, that compelled her to keep his gaze. "Just one?" he asked softly.

"It's never just one," she whispered, her lips brushing against his. Her face flushing at the contact. "You always want more," she said as his hands moved her hip, and back. He gently pulled her in closer to him, until she was pressed up against him. Her eyes widened as her hand brushed over the zipper of his pants. She sucked in a breath as she moved her hands to his chest. "More then I'm willing to give," she whispered.

"If we had this conversation two weeks ago, you would be more than willing," he said as he moved one of his hands to brushed some of her hair behind her ear. His hand moved to her reddened cheek, as he titled her face even move towards his.

"I didn't know two weeks ago about everything that's going on. I still don't...right?" she asked breathlessly.

"You know more than anyone else. Your knowledge is only secondary to mine," he said as his hand slipped under her shirt. She warmth on her back, along with the feel of his lips brushing against hers every time either of them talked, was intoxicating.

"Eric, what are trying to do to me?" she uttered.

"You are still capable of thought?" he asked.

_'Yes,'_ she answered.

"And you mind, that brilliant mind of your. Is it telling you to back away from me?" he asked.

"Yes," she said.

"But you are not listening to it," he said as he hand trailed down from her cheek, to her neck. His thumb rubbed along her throat, causing her to swallow. "Why aren't you?" he asked before he lightly kissed her for a second, it was more a tease than a kiss.

"I don't- I don't know," she said as a few tears fell from her open eyes.

"Because deep down you know that you want this. You know that you want me... You know that you love me," he said. She tried to shake her head, but the effort was too much.

"I don't-... I don't love," she said as her body started to lightly shake in his hold. He started to saunter forward, she had no choice but to walk backwards. Her feet moved backwards, one step at a time. It was only his hand on her back that kept her from losing her balance. "I don't- I don't," she continued to say as her back lightly hit the wall. "I don't..." she whispered. His hand moved from behind her back to her stomach, as he lightly pressed her against the wall.

"You do," he said softly. "You used to stare at up at me while we where in bed. This expression of utter peace, utter contentment on your face. Your soft smile. Your quick mind. That is what I fell in love with," he said as his hand slipped under the fabric of her shirt on her stomach. "What a fool I was," he said with a laugh. "All the signs where there. I was spending every waken moment of day with you. I let other projects, other parts of my life fall to the wayside."

"What a favor I own to Charles. If he hadn't of found out about our relationship, then you and I would never have had that fight. You would not of have stopped speaking with me, and I would not of left the note for you to meet me at the cafe. If he had not of interfered I would still be utterly co-dependent upon you. We would not of had that conversation last Saturday. You would not have told me that I am in love with you," he said with a laugh.

"You were right, of course, my girl. I am very... very much in love with you..." He kissed her then. She melted against him, a warmness radiating around her her entire body, she felt as though she was on fire. Neither of their eyes closing, they continued to stare at one another as they kissed. He broke the kiss, pulled back slightly. "Do you believe me?" he asked suddenly. "Do you believe that I love you?" Her breathing was unsteady as her shaking hands went onto each of his arms. She nodded frantically.

"I- I believe ya," she uttered. He smiled as his hand rubbed against her cheek. "It does- doesn't mean th-that-" she started to say as she tried to shake her head.

"Shh," he hissed softly as he put a finger on her lips. He moved his hand to cup her chin, titling it upwards. "You said that I always want more. You are correct. I will always want more from you, because I know that you are capable of so much. I want a life time with you. No- I want several lifetimes with you."

She took a deep breath.

"Eric, do you have any idea how crazy this all is? How insane you look to me right now?" she asked. "You're holding me captive. You have my teacher, god knows where, and you've asking me to spend several lifetimes with you. Several lifetimes of _this_?" she asked incredulously "Of this insanity?" she yelled as tears started to fall from her eyes. She shook her head no, as she grabbed onto his arms. She tried to push them off of her. "Eric, let me go... please-please... I-I can't breath..." she struggled to say. "...please," she begged as she looked up at him. He released her. She staggered away from him.

She needed to get away from him...fast. She headed towards the bathroom. He lifted his hand up, and the door slammed closed. She fell to the floor as she saw her only route of escape denied to her. She crawled back a few feet until she was leaning against the side of the bed. Her eyes closed as she hyperventilated on the floor. She tried to catch her breath, but it was no use. The more she tried to stop it, the louder her breathing became.

Her eyes opened as she heard footsteps. She watched his feet as he walked passed her. The door to the bathroom opening, as he approached it.

He came out a moment later with a metal cup in his hands. He knelled down beside as he tired to press the cups against her lips. She shook her head frenetically, her hands coming up as she swatted at his face, and the cup.

"It is only water," he said as he gently used one hand to keep her two from hitting him.

"I- I don't beli-"

"Anna," he screamed as he took both of her hands in his. He used his powers to hold the cup in the air. He used his newly freed hand to take hold of her chin. He turned her face to look at him. He waited until he had her gaze before speaking. "If I wanted you to be unconscious I would not need to trick you into drinking a drug. You would be unconscious..." He stared at her for a moment: making sure that she had heard him. "Now, stop acting like a rapid animal, and drink the water," he said firmly.

She nodded slightly. He released her chin as he moved the cup closer to her. He let go of one of her hands. She used it to take the cup out of the air, and bring it to her lips. She took three large gulps.

"More?" he asked. She nodded as she cup flew out of her hand, and towards the bathroom. She took deep breaths as she waited for the cup. She heard the water turn on the bathroom, and then turn off again. Less than a minute later she saw the cup in front of her. She grabbed it out of the air again, and drank all the water. When she was done, she placed the cup on the floor.

"I'm okay, now," she said. She pulled at the hand that was still in his. "I'm not gonna try and hit you again," she said looking up at him. He released her hand. She lowered it to the ground. "I wanna go to sleep now," she whispered. He put his hand on her knee, rubbing slightly. "Alone," she uttered. "There's-" she stopped herself for a moment, her courage failing her. She took another deep breath.

"There's another bedroom across the hall. No one's using it. You could keep the door to this room locked just as easily from there as ya could from here. And then you could have a- … have a bed to sleep on too. So, you wouldn't have to sleep on the floor... Even if you couldn't keep the door locked all night, cause of sleeping. I wouldn't go anywhere. I don't- I don't have anyone to go to. There's no one who could help. You're too-"

"We'll talk tomorrow," he said as he stood up. "Get some sleep," he said as he walked towards the door. "Anna," he said as he got to the door, turning around to look at her again. She looked up at him. "For what it's worth, I am sorry for putting you through all of this."

"Sorry enough to stop?" she asked.

"No, I'm afraid not."

"Then your apologize ain't worth shit," she said bluntly. He looked away from her, and then walked out of the room wordlessly.

She climbing up onto the bed, and pulled the covers over her. Closing her eyes, she cried herself to sleep.

* * *

And that's it for this chapter... I know it ended on a really sad note. But that's what the circumstances called for.

Anyway, I hope to have another chapter up in two weeks. So, that's 12/27/09. Maybe sooner. We'll see how busy my new job makes me.

So, it's review time! Please review! I loved reviews. Pretty pretty please with a cherry on top? For the record: you guys have power. I reworked the entire plot of this chapter to make people happy. There is a limit to what I'm willing to change. For example, this fic's plot will follow the show. That's not changing. I've spend way too much planing out how, Eric and Anna's interactions play out around the plot of the show. But I am open to suggestions. Case in point: this chapter.

I'm also going to try and make the next chapter a little more fun. Like it was in the first six chapters. Messed up things were going on all over the place, but Rogue was still having fun. I'm gonna try and bring that back a little. I have to admit the fic has taken a very very dark turn.

Actually, you know what. I trying to assume how you are guys feel about the fic rather than just ask you guys. What do I know?

**So, I'm gonna put this to a vote. **

Would you guys prefer that the fic continue being as dark as it is, because the plot calls for it (There will be more Eric and Anna interactions no mater what) or would you prefer that I try to make the mood of the fic more fun and carefree? The consequence to that option being that Rogue would have to buy in to Eric's bullshit a little more, and let down her guard around him. Something, I would consider a little out of character for her at this point in the story, but I'm willing to play around with it until I get it right for you guys, if that's what you all want.

Voting will start the moment you read this, and will continue until the 19th. So, one week. I'll have a week to write the chapter. I can do that, no problem.

So, now it's up to all you lovely people!

The option with the most votes wins!

**Mood of the fic: Light or dark? Place your votes! **


	17. Chapter 17

6/26/11

Hey; I decided to go back and change the time continuity errors of the fic

* * *

Hey! Well, that was a surprise! I thought you guys would want the fic to lighten up a bit, but you guys want it dark! Thanks a lot! I'm really glad I asked! So, on with the fic!

* * *

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Seventeen

Rogue's eyes fluttered open at the sound of running water. It was still dark in the room. As she turned over to look at the bathroom door she saw light emanating from beneath it. She closed her eyes as she turned over, letting the warmth of her covers lull her back to sleep.

* * *

Rogue opened her eyes again to see Eric standing with his back turned to her. Only a white towel covered his body. Rogue let out a small gasp before she could stop herself.

"Are you awake?" he whispered.

"Wish I wasn't," she replied softly.

"My apologizes, for waking you," he said as leaned down. She could see, through her half opened eyes, that he was in front in the dresser. He walked away from the dresser, back towards the bathroom: clothes in hand. She closed her eyes again, hoping to fall back asleep.

Just as she had gotten comfortable again, she heard the blow dryer turn on in the bathroom. She groaned as she put a pillow over the side of her head.

After three minutes of being unable to ignore the noise, she threw the covers of her body. She sat up as she looked a the time. It was only eight am.

_'Why the hell am I awake right now?'_ she thought to herself irate, as she sauntered over to her dresser. She pulled out the clothing she would be wearing: her usual green and black attire. She heard a door open behind her.

"Good morning, Anna," he said softly.

"What's good about it?" she asked as she marched passed him, into the bathroom. She slammed the door closed as she muttered under her breath, _"_Fucking eight a'clock in the morning..."

* * *

Ten minutes later she walked out of the bathroom, fully clothed, and still fuming. She opened her mouth, readying to give him a piece of her mind, as she looked up.

To her surprise he wasn't in the room.

Her mouth closed as she realized she was alone. Warily, she glanced around the room.

'He must of went back across the hall,' she guessed as she sat on her bed and put on her shoes. She stood up as she finish and headed for the door. She slowly turned the knob and opened the door. She glanced out.

Eric was standing to her left, he had two brown trench coats hung over his arm. He handed her one of the brown coats. She looked at it questioningly.

"I thought it would be better if I took this from your room _unseen_, rather than having you attempt to explain why you need it," he said. She took it from him with a slow nod. She put it on. "Ready to go then?" Eric asked as he put on his own brown trench coat as he looked down at her.

"Yes," she said.

"Good," he said turned and start to walk down the hallway.

"Where are you going?" she asked, having a sense of de ja vu from a week ago.

"You will see when _we_ get there," he said as he continued to walk.

"...I don't have a choice today, do I? Even if I promised to just sit in this room and read all day, you wouldn't listen, would you?" she asked. She watched as he continued to walk, ignoring her questions. Her eyes narrowed. "I didn't mean wouldn't listen _literally_, Eric," she said annoyed. He chuckled as he stopped walking and turned to look at her.

"Today, I have business to attend to. I had planed my day without the foresight that you would be present. There are things I must do. I can not reschedule and I can not leave you here alone," he said.

"Why not? I won't go anywhere," she promised.

"Your emotions are too erratic, Anna. A product of an eclectic memory. Your prefect recall of events causes your emotions to fluctuate too unpredictably. I can not leave you alone," he said.

"I controlled myself for a week," she insisted

"It was only five days, and your Professor was not missing. I do not know what you would do if you were left on your own with this knowledge, and I have no desire to find out," he said frankly. "Come," he said. She didn't move. "...I can _make_ you walk," he said dryly. "But I have no desire to force you..." he said. She huffed. "In that respect at the very least. I am attempting to make this process as pleasant as possible. But you are not helping," he said.

"So, that's what I'm supposed to doing right now? Help you: The man who's been holding me captive for two months?" she asked sarcastically. "There's a term for that in Psychology. You know psychology, right Eric?" she asked bitterly. "When a captive grows to like, and help there captor," she said as she searched through her memories. She knew she had read it before, Jean had. "Stockholm syndrome," she said once she recalled the term. "No thanks, I already care about you too much. I'm not going to help you too," she said.

"Anna," he said as he turn and walked towards her. "I'm just asking you to _walk_ with me. You have walked with me before," he said as he stood in front of her. He took her hold of her wrist. She pulled at it, but his grip only tightened

"You really want to help me, Eric?" she asked. "Then go away," she yelled.

"I can not," he said calmly. "I've already stated the reason why. Anna," he said softly as she continued to attempt to free her hand, "please do not fight me. Not about such an insignificant detail."

"Insignificant," she exclaimed. "The fact that I can't go where I want when want is insignificant?" she asked in disbelief.

"At this point in time, with everything else happening in Bayville... yes," he answered. She took a deep breath as silent tears ran down her face.

"Erase my memory," she said.

"You can not be serious," he said. She did not back down. "You will keep putting events in place."

"Everything! Everything from this week. From last Saturday until today. I'll remember the phone call, and that's it. I said no, and we'll leave it there. I won't know anything else. You won't have to follow me all the time, just... just when it's convenient for you "

"I can not erase a week from your mind. You powers will allow you to see the gaps. You will know something is wrong. You ask Charles for assistance and _she_ will not be able to help," he said. "I'm going to late," he said as he started to walk: he had to drag her with him.

"Please, Eric," she begged at she took a few steps with him: if she hadn't she would have fallen to the floor. "I just want everything to go back to_ normal_. I don't want to remember all of this... you can replace my memories with others, bridge the gaps. You could reconcile the fight you and I had after the Professor found out about us, You have telepaths, I know you could do it," she cried as they got to the top of the stairs.

She gasped as he pulled her to his side. He put his free hand around his shoulder and his grip around her hand tightened more.

"Eric, you're hurting me," she said as she looked up at him. He gaze was set: he was looking ahead. "All you've done this week is hurt me," she said. She took a deep breath. "Eric... if you... if you love me let me forget," she said. He stopped walking half way down the stairs. He stood in front of her, one step lower than her. His gaze met hers as he glanced at tear covered face her face. His expression softened as he looked into her eyes. He leaned forward and kissed her forehead, her eyes closed at the contact.

"I can not," he said softly into her hair.

"Why?" she asked. "Wouldn't it be easier than dragging me around everywhere?" she said calmly, her eyes still closed. She moved her hands to his chest.

"No it would not," he said.

"Practically?" she asked.

"Yes, it would be easier... practically."

"But emotionally it would be hard," she guessed. "Five days away from me, and you couldn't stand it... You're being selfish now, aren't you?" she asked as she looked up at him.

"For seventy-four years I have never denied myself anything that I want," he said as he hand brushed against her cheek. She sucked in a breath "Why would I start now?" he asked with a small smile.

"You could keep trying to recruit me. I'll keep saying no, but- but we both had more fun when you trying to recruit me. Even the game of chess was more fun," she said quickly. He smiled as he hand cupped her cheek, he rubbed her skin tenderly.

"We did have more fun when you were unaware, but you would just put the clues together again and find out that I am the fragment."

"Eric, the only reason I found out was because _you told me_... Next time just don't tell me," she said. "You don't have to lose me," she said. "And I can be happy," she said. "I might even say yes if things are better, and I never have to know about this week. I- …"she let her voice trail off as she thought. What else could she say. What would make him consider doing it.

"I was so close to having sex with you when I didn't know everything," Rogue said. He chuckled loudly as his hand wiped away tears from her eyes. "I was," she said.

"Oh, my girl," he said softly. "My beautiful, manipulative girl," he said before kissing her: she let him, even returning the kiss when it became more demanding. He placed a light kiss on her lips, before he backed away. "Let's play with this idea for a moment," he said with a smile. "If I were to erase your memory. Fix the fight we had, bridge the gaps, so you would feel that nothing was amiss then you would be completely in the dark. You would know _nothing_," he stressed.

"I would be okay with that," she said.

"Really?" he asked in disbelief. "_You_ would deny yourself knowledge? You would deny yourself the right to ask your questions, and to find my answers?" he asked before laughing softly. "All I've done this last week is answer your questions. And all you have done is gotten angry at me when I refuse to answer them," he said with a smile as he took a step back, she stepped with him.

"That's not all we've done," she calmed.

"True. I've also been attempting to get you into a bed with me. I succeed a few times in that endeavor," he said with a smirk as he took another step backwards. "As enjoyable as our time together last month was, I do consider last Saturday night to be the first time we really came together," he said.

"First time you let me do something for you," she said as she stepped with him off the stairs.

"Yes, it was," he said as he put his arm around her shoulder again.

"You were taking advantage of me," she said softly.

"I am _always_ taking advantage of you," he said as they started to walk towards the front door. "Our relationship in it's entirety is me taking advantage of you. I have never attempted to hide that fact. You are the one who fooled yourself into believing otherwise," he said.

"I trusted you," she exclaimed as they sauntered out the front door.

"You shouldn't have," he said gently as he looked down at her. "If I were to erase your memories of this week I would, with your _permission_, be taking advantage of you. I would be attempting to turn you to my side, and you, without all of the important information you, would be unknowingly stepping into a trap. You speak of stockholm syndrome. What you suggest if far worse. We would be building a bond on false pretenses."

"We already did," she whispered. "Reason I care about you is all that time we had together."

"And if that exchange had gone on longer, the months, the _year_ we would have had together would be the reason you _love me,_" he said strongly. "You were getting closer to love each and every day. I could see it in your eyes."

"I could see it in your too," she said quietly as they walked down the road to the main gate of the institute.

"You _did_ see it in my eyes," he pointed out. She gave out a short laugh. "And then you told me."

"I didn't _tell_ you. I _asked_ you. Your memory sucks," she muttered.

"Compared to yours, Anna, absolutely," he said.

"Wait," she said as she replayed the few sentences he had said in her mind, "You said last night that I already loved you," she said.

"I lied," he said. "I was trying to get you against you a wall, seeing as the bed was not an option."

"Could you stop trying to manipulate into sleeping with you?" she asked annoyed.

"No," he said with a smile. She glared up at his with narrowed eyes, before sighing.

"...You're not going to erase my memory, are you?" she asked.

"I do not believe that you want me to," he said. "The choice _is_ your though," he said.

"Really?" she asked.

"Yes, I simply want you to understand the choice that you're making. The feelings you have and will develop for me will be the product of stockholm syndrome in either scenario."

"Did you really just admit that?" she asked.

"It is the truth, and in this scenario you get the truth. In the scenario you are suggesting, however," he started to say.

"You and I have sex a lot," she finished.

"Yes, we would," he said with a smile. "And I would not hold back any longer. With your permission, I would aim to seduce you completely. Eventually, as the months go on, as the situation in Bayville becomes darker, you would grow to value our relationship more than that of your family's, and that is when I would suggest that you come and find me. You would find me of course. Just as with operation rebirth, the first place you thought to look is where I would be," he said. She laughed softly.

"There was no way I wasn't finding you that day, you made sure of it... Did we actually destroy operation rebirth?" she asked. He laughed.

"Of course not," he laughed. "A machine that valuable? It holds the secrets for _eternal life_ for our people. But I needed Shield to think you had so they would stop pursuing me."

"So, you used me," she said.

"In every sense of the word," he commented.

"And the X-Men," she added.

"That's why I created them," he said offhandedly.

"What?" she asked in shock. She replayed his words in her head just to make sure she had heard him right. "Prof created the- you didn't- you... can erase his memories when ever you want. He's not even at the institute right now, for three days and no one noticed."

"Mr. McCoy did. However, I took care of- _we_ took care of that fact."

"Prof thought it was his idea," she said.

"Well it was," he said. She looked up at him. "Back in the 1980's . But it was far too soon. There were only a handful of us at that time. If Charles had formed his team of dreamers when he had first thought of it, someone would have taking the part I play now, and opposed his peaceful mantra. Fights would have broken out, our existence would have been made public before you were even born."

"Anti-mutant groups would have formed _before_ we had the number to fight them. Laws would have passed that would be beyond our control and the fight would have been lost before it even begun. Charles would have caused more harm to the mutant cause than good," he said as the approached the gates His hand moved till it was around her waist. "Face me," he ordered gently. She turned around in his arms until she was facing him.

"Why start all this now? Why wait _twenty_ years?" she asked.

"Hold on," he said. She looped her arms around his neck. His hold tightened on her waist as he lifted them up into the air, and over the gate. "The time was not right until now. I needed certain people I can trust to do certain things, and those individuals did not come of age until this past year," he said as he as he lifted them higher into the air.

"Who?" she asked as she tightened her grip around his hold as she looked down at the streets they were flying over.

"I'm not gong to let you fall," he said as he tightened his hold on her waist.

"I know," she said. "Who?" she asked again.

"You will find out in time... _If_ you decide to keep to _this_ scenario," he added. She glanced back at his face to see him smirking at her. She sighed. "Truth, or a facade. The choice is yours," he said.

She took a deep breath before she said, "Truth."

"That's my girl," he said with pride before kissing her lightly.

"If I change my mind," she started to say.

"It will depend on when and where you change your decision. There will be some instants where I will be unable to fulfill your request," he said.

"I understand," she said.

"I know you do," he said with a smile. "You are the only one who does."

"...You don't want me to forget," she said.

"No, no I do not," he said. "I enjoy having someone to confide in. It has been many years since I've found someone with the potential to match me intellectually."

"The Professor?" she asked.

"Was a good friend, but too set in his ways. Where as you are-"

"Corruptible," she finished with a raised eyebrow.

"Young," he said with a smile. "You have not decided upon anything, in terms of your ideology," he said.

"I know I'm not saying yes to you," she said.

"But _why_ won't you say yes?" he asked. "Because you disagree with my point of view, or what I have done to you?" he asked.

"What you've done to me," she said with a sigh. "I don't know about anything else," she admitted.

"Yet," he added with a smirk. "You are, however, leaning more towards my point of view," he said.

"What's make ya think that?" she asked with a raised eyebrow.

"A few conversations we have had. The conversation you had with Mr. Summer's Friday before last," he said.

"You were there? You were the fragment course you were there," she answered her own question.

"You're still have difficulty thinking of the me as the fragment as the same," he said.

"It's getting easier," she said as she looked into his eyes. She knew those eyes, the soft blue ones, staring back at her all those nights while she fell asleep in the same arms that were holding her now. His grip tightened over her back, she gasped. Despite the cold in the air they were flying though she felt warm, oddly safe in his arms. She moved one of hands against his cheek. He lifted one of his hand up and removed the glove from the hand that was one her cheek, before moving his hand back to her waist. Her fingers brushed against his lips. He kissed her fingers, as he had many times in the past. Her face blushed as she moved her hand back to his cheek. He smiled.

She remembered this smile, the kind smile that told her he understood everything she was feeling in ways no one else had before, or ever will again. "It's getting easier," Rogue whispered. He removed the gaps between their lips. Her eyes closed as he kissed her. She wrapped her arm around his neck again, pulling herself closer to him as his tongue entered her mouth. She broke the kiss a minute or so later. "I shouldn't do that," she whispered.

"You desire some happiness during this ordeal I am putting you through," he said.

"But I shouldn't get it from you," she said.

"There is no one else you could get it from," he pointed out.

"I know," she uttered as tears escaped her eyes. "That's really not fair," she whispered.

"I never claimed it was," he said gently as he lowered them to the ground. "I'm afraid we will have to finish this conversation after my meetings. We are here and I am late," he said as she looked around. She recognized this alley, the metal door she was staring at.

"The cafe," she said as she let go of his neck.

"Indeed," he said as he used his powers to open the back door. "After you, Anna," he said with a smile as his hand gestured towards the door.

* * *

I'm done for now! It's shorter than I had planned, but in the last two days I written over 18 pages for this chapter. I've rewritten it over five times! I like what I have, now. I like what It says. It's dark, but enjoyable. It has a good balance that served the plot of the story.

At least that's what I think. But how do you feel about it? Please let me know!

Speaking of which:

Review time!

Nisiria: Thanks for voting! Aww, thanks! Hope I this chapter didn't disappoint. ^.^

Darkness-Lightness: Sorry, more people voted dark! Hope you liked it though, please let me know!

LadyNorth76: Thanks! ^.^

Meow114: Thank you! I'm still going to try and update faster though. I really like writing for people like you! Plus it's been a year real time and less than two weeks in my fic's timeline. I'm going to try and get though at least a few months this year. We'll see what happens. Anyway, Thanks for the lovely review! I hope to hear from you again.

Falynn07: Aww! Bopping is cute! Thanks for voting, and I hope you liked the mood of this chapter. Please let me know!

Warrioroftheseventhstar: I will, definitely, be keeping your suggesting in mind as I write the fic! Thanks for the review!

Original1: Thank you! Your review was a really big ego boost for me, thanks for that! Hope you loved this chapter, and I hope to hear from you again.

Pointyearsrule: Your awesome amount of reviews made my day! I kept checking my email and each time there was a new review from you! Thanks for that! I'm glad you like the mind games and episode tie-in, cause we are not even close ot being done with either of those! I hope to hear from you again ^.^

BTW, I agree with your name. Pointy ears do rule!

Sinner-Pandemonium: You hit Magneto with a tomato! There was red stuff all over him after your review. That's why he had to take a shower! It's all your fault he woke up poor Rogue at eight in the morning! Shame on you XO! (By that I mean, I got the idea to make him take a shower after rereading your review ^.^)

Thanks for voting! Hope you loved this chapter and I hope to hear from you again!

Peneneth: Aww, I love making people squeal! I'm glade you enjoyed Eric's return ^.^ Thanks for voting. I will, definitely, keep what you said in mind as I'm writing the rest of the fic. Thanks for the happy birthdaying! I agree, I am proud! Thanks for the review, I hope to hear from you again!

Myst4drgn: I would NEVER turn Rogue into a ditz, ever! I'm probably making her too smart! But I think my explanation of her powers, and Magneto's influence on her calls for it. Thanks for the awesome review! I hope to hear from you again.


	18. Chapter 18

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Eighteen

Rogue sighed as she turned to the last page in the novel she had been reading. She was sitting on the couch in the same room her and Eric had talked in the last time she was at the cafe.

She sighed again, a minute later, as she closed the book. She leaned forward and put it on the table. She let herself collapse onto the couch, choosing to lay down this time. She stared at the door, hoping, praying it would open. It had been almost five hours since Eric had left her in this room. She had slept for two hours, and then spent the rest of her time reading that book.

_'God, I'm hungry,' _she thought to herself again. _'...Maybe I could get some more sleep,_' she thought to herself as she closed her eyes.

Just as she twisted her body into a comfortable position she heard the door open. _'Finally,' _she thought annoyed as she quickly opened her eyes.

She looked up to see a young man in his early twenties. He had reddish-brown hair, neatly cut, brown eyes. He was wearing a brown business suit.

She recognized him instantly.

"Graydon?" Rogue asked confused. She watched him take a deep breath.

"Hi, sis," Graydon Creed said as he walked into the room.

"Where's Magneto?" she asked confused as she sat up.

"He's in another meeting," Graydon said as he leaned against the wall, crossing his arms over his chest.

"You _work_ for him?" she asked bewildered.

"We both do," Emma Frost said. Rogue looked up to see her brother's girlfriend standing in the doorway. She took a step into the room, closing the door behind her. Emma was wearing a cream business suit, with a pink shirt underneath. Her blond hair was a little longer than the last time she had seen her: it was now down a few inches past her shoulders. Emma's blue eyes bore into Rogue's as she playfully sauntered into the room. "There are a few things Magneto told me to inform you of _immediately_. First off," she said. _ 'I am _telepathic,' Emma said. Rogue heard the thought in her mind. "And extremely _loyal_ to Magneto's cause, as is Graydon," she said as she pointed to Graydon. "Second, if you attempt to _attack_ either one of us, I have permission to render you unconscious. It's nothing personal, Rogue. Orders are orders... Actually, I was rather hoping we could be _friends_. Seeing as I have every intention of keeping your brother," Emma said as she walked over to Graydon holding out her hands to him. Graydon took Emma's hands in his, giving her a soft kiss on the lips.

"I'm really _sorry_ about this, Rogue," Graydon said sympathetically as he looked past Emma shoulder at Rogue.

"Okay," Rogue said, not knowing what else to say. She took a deep breath. "So, you two are _watching_ me until, Eric's done with his meetings," she said.

"More or less," Emma said.

"So, you've been in here for what, two hours?" Graydon asked.

"Five," Rogue said dryly.

"Awesome," Graydon said sarcastically before sighing. "...You hungry?" he asked.

"I'm_ starving_," Rogue exclaimed as she stood up. She picked up her coat, and put it on.

"What are you in the mood for?" Graydon asked as Rogue headed for door. Emma moved in front of it.

"The meeting is still going on," Emma pointed out. "We're going out the back door," she said.

"Breakfast," Rogue answered bitterly as she turned around, and marched over to the bookshelf. She pulled at the book 'Open Sesame.'

* * *

Ten minutes later the three of them were sitting in a small diner. Rogue rested her chin on her hand as she stared out the window from the green booth they were sitting in. Rogue sat across the table from Emma and Graydon

"Rogue, do you know what you're getting?" Graydon asked as he looked up, from his menu, at her.

"Yup," she replied dryly as she watched people walk past the diner. Graydon sigh as he turned to look at Emma.

"Do you know what you want?" he asked.

"I'm still deciding," Emma muttered as she looked over the menu. "Which sounds better, pancakes or waffles?" she asked.

"Hm-" Graydon started to say.

"French toast," Rogue answered. They both looked up at her.

"That was the only thing Dad could ever cook right," he said with a grin.

"Everything else he _burned_," Rogue said with a small smile.

"I remember the fights Mom and Dad had over food," he said

"I remember the fights they had over _everything_... _Any_ excuse to _yell_ at each other," she said bitterly.

"That's why they're not _married_ anymore," he said with a small smile. "Sorry, you got caught up in the middle of it all," he said.

"It's not your fault, Gray," Rogue said.

"Neither is your situation with Magneto," Emma added. Rogue glared at her coldly.

"Emma!" Graydon exclaimed.

"It's the truth," Emma claimed calmly. "Yet she been acting as through _we_ are to blame," she said.

"You're _helping_ him," she said with anger. "You've _been_ helping him. Tell me the _truth,_ Graydon," Rogue said as she switched her gaze to him. "Last Saturday were you at the institute? Was your _girlfriend_ the one who kept erasing everyone's memories?"

"We are not supposed to answer questions of that-" Emma started to say.

"Yes," Graydon sighed.

"I fucking knew it," Rogue said. "I _recognized_ your voice," she said looking at Emma.

"Magneto said we were not to answer any of her questions regrading this past week," Emma reprimanded. "Are you trying to anger the most _powerful_ mutant on the planet? Not to mention our _employer_?" she asked him sternly.

"She deserves to know," Graydon said.

"What she does or does not deserve is not our choice to make: it's Magneto's," Emma stressed. "We're just _babysitting_," she reminded him.

"You people need a few more minutes then?" their waiter asked confused. Emma looked up at the young man with a grin. Rogue watched as the the young man's confused expression was replaced with a smile.

"We're are ready to order now, Keven." Emma said as she picked up her menu. "I will have an order of waffles. He will have pancakes, and two eggs sunny-side-up, and we would like two cups of coffee. Do you have whole mike?" she asked.

"Yes," he answered.

"A small pitcher of that, thank you," she said as she took Graydon's menu. "What do you want, Rogue?" she asked as she handed both her menu and Graydon's to the waiter.

"What did you do to him?" she asked.

"...What do you _want_, Rogue?" Emma repeated dryly.

"...French toast," she answered glaring at Emma. The man held out his hand to Rogue. She handed him the menu, refusing to look away from Emma.

"Anything else?" Emma asked.

"A glass of orange juice," Rogue said.

"I'll be back with your drinks in a moment," the waiter said before walking away: a dazed smile on his face.

"What did you do to him?" Rogue asked strongly.

"He over heard the conversation. He could not leave the area with that knowledge, even if he didn't know what to do with it. You know _exactly_ what I did," she said. "Next time, kept your voice _low_, and I will not have to rearrange the memories of everyone within _earshot_," she said.

"...We are _never_ gonna be friends," Rogue said firmly.

"Never say never, dear," Emma said with a smile. "You would be surprised how circumstances can change a person, given enough time," she said as she waiter returned to the table. "Thank you," she said as she took the cup of coffee he handed her. He handed Graydon a cup of coffee.

"Thanks," Rogue muttered as the waiter put a glass in front of her.

"Your food will be out soon," he said as he placed the pitcher of milk on the table. He walked away.

Rogue switched her gaze back to the window.

Rogue sighed. Yes, she didn't like the company she was in, but at least Emma wasn't trying to seduce her. That was a plus. Of course, she would much rather be home with her family.

_'Graydon's family too,'_ Rogue reminded herself. Just then a question came to mind. She looked up at Graydon. "Did you get to see Kurt?" she asked.

"...Yeah," he answered. "I didn't get to meet him like you wanted me too, but I did see him. He seems like a good kid," he said.

"He is a good kid... the best," Rogue said quietly. "...I just want to go home," she muttered.

"I wish I could take you," Graydon said sincerely.

"You _could..._but you're not gonna," she said. "You fear Magneto more than you love me," she said sorrowfully.

"Rogue, it's not a matter of-" Graydon started to say.

"Graydon is not at fault here," Emma said. "_You _are the one who choose the wrong side, not him," she said.

"The x-men are my family," Rogue said.

"Graydon's family too," Emma said with a smirk. Rogue's eyes narrowed.

"Stay _out_ of my head," she demanded.

"So, is Victor," Emma said ignoring Rogue's comment. "And Raven," she added.

"Raven isn't _on_ Magneto's team. She being used by Eric, same as the x-men," Rogue said. "You don't kno-"

"Food's here," Graydon said interrupting Rogue. Rogue let out a sigh as she looked up to see their waiter bring over a tray of food.

_'That was fast,'_ Rogue thought to herself.

"Okay," Mike said slowly as he got to the table. "Waffles for you," he said as he placed the plate in front of her. "Pancakes for you," he said as he handed the plate to Graydon, "and french toast for you," he said as he placed the plate in front of Rogue. "Did you need anything else?"

"Graydon, Rogue?" Emma asked condescendingly as she looked up at Rogue.

"No, we're good," Rogue said dryly as she picked up her fork and knife.

"French toast sounds rather appetizing," Eric said. Rogue quickly glanced up to see Eric standing behind the waiter. "Another order of that," he said with a smile as he took a step closer to the table.

'_Where the hell did he come from?'_ Rogue asked herself. She realized a moment later that she was pointing her knife straight at him. Eric looked down at her as the waiter walked away.

"My dear," he said as their made eye contact, "if you wouldn't mind," he said gesturing towards her sit.

"Yeah," she muttered as she placed the knife and fork on the table. She moved further in the booth, towards the window, giving him room to sit.

"Thank you, Anna," he said as he took off his coat. She reached over and grabbed her glass of juice. A moment later he sat down next to her, as she reached over and picked up her plate. She reached over again for her fork and knife, but found that they were both in Eric's hand. She looked up at him, again their eyes meeting.

"Can I have those?" she asked quietly.

"Of course," he said with smile as he moved his hand towards her. She reached out towards his hand and picked up the utensils out of his hand.

"Thanks" she muttered as she turned her attention to her plate, and started to cut up her toast. Rogue kept her eyes on her plate, no wanting to look or talk to any of them.

"Anna, would you mind if we shared?" Eric asked. "I'll of course return the favor once my order comes," he said.

"It will be _quick_, sir," Emma said. Magneto nodded towards Emma.

"Nevertheless," Eric said looking down at Rogue. With as sigh she moved her plate a few inches to the right so he could reach it. "Thank you," he said. "Syrup?" he asked. Rogue nodded. Eric reached over to one of the metal syrup pitchers on the table. Rogue watched it move a few inches on it's own, until it was in his hand. He brought it over to the plate and started to pore. "Please, tell me when to stop," he said: Rogue noted the flash of surprise in her brother's eyes when Magneto said the word 'please'. Rogue turned her gaze back to her plate as she watched the syrup pore onto their french toast.

"That's good," she uttered after a moment. He put the small pitched back on the table and picked up a fork. They both took a piece of french toast within a second of each other and had their first bites.

"Excellent choice, Anna," Eric commented. Rogue didn't comment on his statement, choosing to just eat her food. After a few bites she lifted up her glass and took a sip of her juice. "Damn," he uttered. "I forgot to order a drink," he stated.

"You want some of my juice too?" Rogue asked with attitude before she could stop herself. She saw her brother's eyes full with fear, on her behalf.

"No, no," he said offhandedly, "I wouldn't wish to _inconvenience_ you like that," he said with a grin.

"Really?" she asked with a small smile. "Well, then I'll just go _home_ and get out of your way," she joked.

He laughed before saying, "I rather _like_ you in my way," as he glanced over at her.

"I've _noticed_," Rogue said as she picked up another piece of food with her fork. "Whole, fucking, world's noticed," she muttered before she took another bite off her fork. He chuckled.

"That's a bit of an overstatement, my dear," he said with a smile before he took another forkful of toast off her plate.

"Yeah, I know," she mumbled before she took another bit. There was something she wanted to know "...It's been an half an hour since they," she said pointing at Graydon and Emma, "came to get me. Why didn't you just wait till the meeting was over and take me yourself?" she asked before taking another bite of food.

"I thought you would like to see your brother," Eric said.

"I got another brother I'd like to see right now, but you ain't going out of your way to make that happen. There's another reason," she said before taking another sip of her drink.

"Yes, there is," Eric answered before taking another bite. She stared at him incredulously for a few moments waiting for him to elaborate

"...And?" Rogue asked as she claimed the last piece of french toast for herself.

"You tell me," Eric said.

"_I'm_ supposed to know the answer?" she asked in disbelief, slightly annoyed.

"Yes," he answered. "Actually, it is the answer to a question you asked me earlier today," he said as they watched the waiter walk up to their table with a plate of french toast in hand. "Perfect timing," Eric said with a smile as he lifted up the plate they had just finished. The waiter placed the new dish of food in front of Magneto, then he took the old plate out of Eric's hands. "Also, I would like a cup of coffee," he said.

"And two refills please," Emma said meekly.

"I'll be back in a minute with your drinks," the waiter said as he walked away.

Meanwhile, Rogue had spent the last few moments going over the conversation she and Eric had on the way the to the cafe that morning:

"_I needed certain people I can trust to do certain things, and those individuals did not come of age until this past year," _

"_Who?"_

Rogue pulled herself out of the memory as she looked up at Eric.

"Graydon just graduated from law school last semester," Rogue said as she noticed that he had cut the the french toast and put syrup on it.

"Correct," Eric said with a smile. "On the first guess… as usual," he said with a smile before he ate another piece of french toast. Rogue took another piece of french toast off of his plate as she thought.

"And Emma's a gifted telepath," she said as she pointed at Emma. "Of the right age and dating the correct person to be present at some political meetings. Eventually, very important political meetings," Rogue guessed.

"Go on," Eric encouraged.

"And they're probably not the only two young people you have known their whole lives," she said as he waiter came back with the drinks. Rogue stopped speaking as the waiter got to their booth. She took another bite of her food as she watched the waiter put down the cup of coffee, and refill Emma and Graydon's cups. "Or have helped at least a portion of their lives," she said as Eric took the pitcher of milk and added some to his coffee. " Probably helping or encouraging these other people to get into these positions that could be useful to you too," she guessed before she took another bite of french toast. She looked back over to Eric: he was putting sugar in his coffee.

"Why would I want that?" Eric asked as he stirred his drink, and put the spoon down

"Why_ wouldn't_ you want young telepaths completely devoted to you and your cause _infiltrating_ the government?" she asked as she looked over at him. Rogue glanced up for a moment at her brother and Emma: both of them were staring at her in shock.

Eric smiled widely before asking, "What part of that train of thought," he started to say: pausing to take a sip of his coffee, "which was completely accurate by the way, does not qualify you as a strategist?" he asked before taking another sip of his coffee.

"I don't know," she said annoyed as Eric took another sip. "Maybe the part where I don't _want_ to be a strategist," she said.

"That is not what you said last month," he pointed out.

"What I said last month don't count cause you were holding me against my will the entire time," she said.

"You _enjoyed _spending time with me then," he said.

"Yes, I enjoyed it, cause I didn't know any better... Let me ask you this, if I had finished my thought that night would be here right now?" she asked.

"Which thought are talking about? You have quite a lot of them," he said. She smiled.

"Translation, you have _no idea_ what I'm talking about," she said with a grin.

"That is not what I said," he said as he looked down at her. She took another bite of french toast.

"But it's true," she said with a smirk.

"You question was extremely vague," he pointed out. She gave out a short laugh, before she took another sip of her drink. "_When_ was this thought?" he asked with a sigh.

"Night of operation rebirth, after I talked to the Professor, and went back to my room," she said.

"Ah, yes," he said. "That was the night I convinced you let me assist you in gaining control over your powers," he said. He gave out a laugh. "Which part of the night are you referring to? We had a rather lengthy discussion that night,"

"I asked you what you were going to do," Rogue said. She rolled her eyes. "I mean I asked you what your _counterpart_ was going to do," she said.

"What was my response?" he asked.

"You said 'I haven't the slightest idea... how could I?'" she quoted.

"And what did you say?" he asked.

"You couldn't know… unless," she quoted.

"Unless what?" he asked with a smile.

"Unless you were the fragment... I didn't say that out loud... I was paying attention to wrong detail," she said quietly.

"How so?" Eric asked.

"Do you remember _who_ I sitting on at the time?" she asked. He laughed

"I understand," he said. "I distracted you with that quite often," he said with a small smirk. She replayed the conversation in her head again.

"...You encouraged me to finished the thought. Why the hell did you encourage me?" Rogue asked as she looked back up at him.

"Why did I encourage you to do the _opposite _of what I _wanted_ you to do at a time where you _distrusted_ everything I said?" he asked himself playfully. "For the life of me, I don't know _what_ I was thinking," he said. Rogue rolled her eyes.

"Manipulative asshole," Rogue mumbled. She saw her brother's eyes widen in complete fear. As Eric started to chuckle, Graydon facial expression became one of confusion. _'Yeah, cause _I'm_ the one who choose the wrong side,'_ Rogue thought to herself as she watched her brother's facial expressions. '_At least on my side we're not kept in the dark about everything, I bet they only know the what exactly what they're supposed to be doing. They probably have no idea-' _

"Would you care to share those brilliant thoughts of yours?" Eric asked her. Rogue looked up at him. He met her gaze, smiling.

" Yesterday you said my knowledge was only secondary to yours. Does that include them?" she asked pointing to Graydon and Emma. She watched Emma roll her eyes.

"Yes," Eric answered. Emma's eye widened at Magneto's statement. "Anna, we are in a very unique situation. You know more about me than any other person alive, because of your powers," he said.

"You're the one who taught me how use them," she said.

"Yes, I did for many reasons. But even before you gained some control over your mental abilities you knew more than any other person. For example, you are the only person alive who knows my real name, among other details," he said.

"Wait, I thought Prof knew your- ..." she gave out a short laugh. "That's what you wanted me to think... Do you really prefer Eric?" she asked.

"Do you really prefer Rogue?" he asked.

"...Could you ever just answer a damn question?" she asked annoyed.

"Who's the captor?" he asked with a smirk.

"You, _jackass_... Fine," she exclaimed. He chuckled. She sighed as she gave it some thought. "I told Scott I did, but... you've been calling me Anna for months now, and I don't _hate_ it... I guess I'm just use to Rogue. Everyone's been calling me that since I was six..." she paused to took another bite of french toast. "If I'm the only person alive who knows your real name... and I'm assuming you put it like that cause you don't want me to say you're real name out loud," she guessed.

"No, I trust both Emma and Graydon. You can call me Max if you like," he told her. "Just not in front of anyone else," he said firmly.

"I think I'll just stick to Eric: less confusing. And god forbid I have _slip of the tongue," _she said with false dread.

"You understand that I can not allow you to tell certain people certain facts-"

"Who is there to tell?" she asked annoyed.

"Professor Xavier," Emma said. Both Rogue and Eric looked up at her. "Any other instructor at that school," she said. Rogue raised an eyebrow at Emma's comment.

"Okay, now I'm confused. If Emma's not doing telepathic things at the institute anymore. Then what is she doing here?" Rogue asked.

"Anymore?" Eric asked. "What makes you think she was ever there to begin with?" he asked.

"There were three pods, I heard _her_ voice over the phone that day, and when I was outside of my room you asked a woman whether I could hear_ either_ of them," she answered. Rogue noted the look of relief on her brother's face. "I assumed it was both of them in the institute last week as soon I saw Emma at the cafe," she said. "Graydon was the one fixed my wall right?" she asked.

"Yes, he was," Eric answered slowly.

" And you used that girl Blindspot cause you didn't want me to know that Emma and Graydon work for you. But because I kept finding out things you _changed_ your plains for my captivity. Now you're _encouraging_ me figure things out. You're answering more of my questions, with _much_ less hesitation than last week. The fragment's gone, which means you're done_ punishing_ me,"

"Punishing you?" he asked confounded. "Leaving him with you was never about- what gave you that idea, Anna?"

"Hmm, let me think," she said with anger as she dropped her fork. "He wanted to know what it was that you were you planning and the only way to do that was to get me to go call _you._ He spent _every_ _moment_ trying to _break_ _my spirit_, so I would give up hope and say yes to you. It was the _worst_ four day of my life... God, I even wished at one point that I was dealing with _you_ instead of him. At least you try to be nice. But I guess that was the plan wasn't it?," she asked bitterly. "Give me a dose of how bad captivity _could be_ under you if you had no emotions for me, make me grateful for the way you do things, and then come back.. I'm so happy I don't have to deal with the unfeeling version of you, I won't attempt to attack you again.

"Anna-" he said softly, but she continued to speak.

"Well, congratulation, Eric, it _worked_. I'm not gonna try to attack you again. One, cause I know I can't beat you, and two, cause I really would rather deal with you than him," she finished.

"Anna... I had no idea," he said.

"Do, you honestly expect me to believe you?" she asked with a laugh in disbelief. He looked down at her before sighing.

"No, I suppose not," he said sorrowfully. "...The fragment attempted to break your spirit. How?" Eric asked.

"Taunting me mostly... He kept saying how much I preferred your company to his... He threatened- he threatened to regress all the training we'd done with my powers," she said quietly as a few tears ran down her face. "...He would never shut up," she said softly as her eyes became distant. "He- he always said that I should call you... That- that you would make me... make me safe," she whispered. "...I don't wanna relive it," she said quietly.

"You do not have too," he said as he handed her a napkin. She took it out if his hands. "I am sorry," he said sincerely.

"You're really sorry, promising me it'll never happen again," she said softly as she wiped her eyes.

"You have my word," Eric said immediately. Rogue met his gaze as she put the napkin on the table.

" ...Do you have any idea how _suspicious _that looks to me?" she asked, struggling to keep her voice low. "I spend four days in hell with that thing, and then you come back. _Conveniently_ with no knowledge of what's happened to me... My _protector_," she said bitterly. "Keeping the big bad fragment from psychologically torturing me... It's too much, Eric," she said while shaking her head. "Too much _bullshit_," she said as she looked away from him, out the window. She felt his hand on her shoulder a moment later. "Don't," she uttered in disgust as she shrugged his hand off of her.

"Have you finished eating?" Eric asked gently.

"Been done for a while," she mumbled.

"I am going to take you home then," he said.

"You don't have any more meetings?" she asked as she looked over at him.

"Cancel everything," Eric said looking at Emma and Graydon.

They both nodded in his directing, saying "Yes, sir," in unison.

"Come, Anna," Eric said as he stood up. He put on his jacket. She slide out of the booth, taking her coat with her.

"Bye Gray, Emma" she mumbled as she put on her coat.

"Bye, Rogue," Graydon said quietly. Rogue turned around to see Eric behind her. "How are we getting home?" she asked as they started to walk towards the door.

"The same way we left," he said as he hand rested on the small of her back.

"Can't we take a cab or something?" she pleaded as she looked up at him. "I don't much feel like being _distracted _right now," she said as they walked out the front door.

"It will take longer. I will still have to fly us over the gate," he said as they walked down the street.

"Whatever," she mumbled as they walked down an alley way. He stopped once they were halfway down the alley. She stopped with him, watching him look around.

"Hold on," he said as he looked down at her. She sighed as she put her arms around his neck. She stared at his collar, trying to avoid his eyes. His hands went to her waist. He gently pulled her a little closer. She gasped slightly at the contact. She could feel his eyes staring at her as he lift them up int the air.

Tears ran down her face as she glared at the his white collar. The same white collar she had seen countless time over the past month. Her entire situation started to hit her as started to cry harder. Everything she had been through with him, everything she was feeling came to the surface as she leaned her head on his chest and cried.

It was so unfair. All she wanted to do at that moment, all she could do, was find a little release for all the emotional stress she had undergone... and the one she was forced to take solace in was the very person who had caused all of her stress.

_'It's not fair,' _ she thought._ 'None of this is...'_ she thought before glancing up at him. His eyes were glassy, filled with conflict. "You can't let me go, can you?" she asked.

"Not from this height, no," he uttered as he stared down at her.

"That's not what I meant," she mumbled.

"I know," he said.

"...Are you going to leave me alone when we get back to the institute?" she asked. "I'm not gonna go any where. I just wanna go to sleep. I'm tired," she whispered. She gasped as she felt one of his hands move under her legs and lift her up, until her was carrying her like a bride. "Eric," she gasped.

"Shh, get some sleep," he said.

"But-"

"I will not let you fall. You have been asleep while in my captive before, and the last time I asked you said I made a good _pillow_," he said with a small smile. "I can only assume-" he started to say.

"Eric, shut up," she said as she leaned against his chest, closing her eyes.

Sleep soon followed.

* * *

So, that's it! Okay, this time I really do have to finish my psy paper. So, yeah, I'll get that done, and hopefully I'll be able to update again in another two weeks or so. I don't know why but the chapters are starting to take me longer to write. Yeah this one was a little longer than the other one, but I wrote over twenty pages of this chapter before I came up with something I really liked. I think this indecisiveness on my part is being caused by the time frame we found ourselves in at this point of the story.

As you all know, I rewrote chapter 16 to people's liking, and that caused to me to rearrange the plot a bit. I'll start to write faster once Eric is done killing time, and ready to go through with his plans for Bayville next week. Still then we're stuck in this stalemate. Rogue won't say yes, Magneto can not let her go.

The next episode is only a week away in Rogue's time. How long could take me to write a week? Definitely not a year... I'm not going to do that... again... :whisles innocently:

Review time:

Crazyjess09: I'm glad you liked the last chapter! I really hope you loved this one! Sorry, there was no steamy stuff in this chapter. One of the earlier drafts of it did, but then I had to leave it out because after the third rewrite the conversation took a different turn, and they didn't end up back at the cafe like I had originally written. Sorry! Maybe next chapter I'll be able to get some of it in. Here's hoping ^.^ Thanks for the review, and I hope to here from you again!

Warrioroftheseventhstar: Thanks! I'm glad that you like that he didn't erase her memory. Yeah, he's more human in this fic, but it was also self-serving, as is pretty much everything he does. I hope you loved this chapter too! Thanks for the review, and I hope you have a great year!!! I hope to hear from you again ^.^


	19. Chapter 19

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Nineteen

Rogue let out a soft yawn as she slowly started to wake up. Her hands reached out in front of her for her pillow, as she enjoyed the warmth of her covers. Her hand touched the mass in front of her. Her hands grabbed at the fabric as she slowly opened her eyes and looked over. She kept herself from gasping and moving as she realized she was holding onto Eric's shirt.

She glanced up at his face. His eyes were closed. She took a deep breath as she looked around the room. She saw, in his hand by his side, a copy of the Prince.

_'He musta fallen asleep while reading,_' she thought to herself. She twisted her head slightly looking around the rest of the room. It was then she felt Eric's other hand behind her head.

She froze as she heard him groan. His hand moved to the back of her shoulder, pulling her towards him. She turned her face back towards his chest as his arm tightened his hold around her shoulder. She looked back up at his face.

_'Yeah, he's still asleep,'_ she thought as she slowly let go of his shirt. She let out a quiet sigh. The way she was pressed up against him now: there was no way she was going to be able to get up without waking him. She glanced at her hand: it was still gloved, which only severed to confuse her. Why had he taken off her green shirt, leaving her arm exposed, but left her gloves on? The cover her gloves gave her only protected a small amount of her skin from rubbing against his.

'_With my arms bare like this, and both of us asleep, there's all kinds of room for accidents,' _she thought to herself. She kept herself from gasping as she replayed that thought in her mind. _'He's not erasing my memory anymore, not until I say so... so if there was an accident...' _she thought to herself as she gazed back up at his face. His head rested on the pillow, leaning down towards her. If his eyes were open he would be staring directly into hers. _'I can do this,'_ she thought as she moved her hand off of his chest as slowly as she could. Her heart started to race as she stared at his face:searching for any change as she moved her hand off of his chest.

If there was any side of him waking up she would have to stop quickly before he realized what she was attempting to do. She honestly wasn't sure what she was going to do once she had absorbed him. If nothing else she would know what was going on in Bayville, his plans, probably find out where the Professor is.

_'That would be worth it,' _she thought to herself. If she could knock him out long enough maybe she could escape. _'And go where?'_ she asked herself. Panic filled her and she stopped her arm's movements. _'Get the Professor...' _she answered herself. _'And what's he gonna do? … Help? … Protect you? … That's not gonna work. Prof couldn't protect me when he was here. He won't be able to do it even if I go get him. Eric's too strong... He'll wake up, and find me and the Professor... Even if he thinks it was just an accident that I took advantage of he'll still be mad. He'll still have ta react. That's not gonna work. It's not... it's not permanent enough' _she told herself._ '...And what would be?'_ she asked herself. '_Killing him?'_ She paused as she took a deep breath. '... _I could- if I held on long enough I could kill him,' _she thought slowly.

She felt her heart skip a beat: Something inside of her cried out at the thought.

_'No, I- I couldn't... I'm not a killer,'_ she thought to herself._ 'I... but he's never gonna stop...' _she thought as a few tears ran down her face. She closed her eyes for a moment, letting the tears _ 'If I don't do this now while I got the chance I'll never be safe,' _she told herself. She stared up at his face. His expression was one of content. Even in his sleep she found him attractive. Her face brushed. _'Stop that,'_ she yelled at herself. '_That's not a good enough reason...'_ She closed her eyes. _'He wants you to care for him. He wants you to like him. He wants you to want him... Girl, he is holding you _captive_. He has the professor somewhere, and you are the only one who can do anything to stop him... I'm the only one who can,'_ she thought as she opened her eyes again.

She stared at his face. His eyes were still closed.

_'When am I gonna get this chance again... It's now or never,' _she thought as she watched her arm start to move again. She fought to keep her crying low as she moved her arm towards his face. _'I'm the only one,'_ she thought as bite on her bottom lip to keep from making noise: tear ran down her face.

"I thought you weren't going to attack me again," Eric mumbled. She let out a gasp as she retracted her arm. His hand shot out and grabbed it. He gently placed her hand on his chest. She let out a sigh in relief and lowered her gaze: she could not bring herself to look him in the eye. She closed her eyes letting the tears run down her face as she took deep breaths.

She gasped as he cupped her cheek with his hand and gently tilted her face until she was facing him.

"Open your eyes, Anna. I want you to look at me," he commanded softly. She tried to shake her head, but his hand on her face would not allow her too. She felt his thumb rub away some of the water on her face. "Look at me, Rogue," he said again. She took more deep breaths, attempting to regain control of herself.

"Please," he uttered. There was a tone to his voice, a desperation in it, that made her unable to deny him. She found her eyes opening before she could stop herself. Her vision was burred by the water. But she was almost sure he had a look of confusion on his face as he stared at hers. She felt his other hand, around her shoulder, move into her hair: brushing some of it off of her face, as his other hand continued to gently wipe the tears away with his thumb.

"Do my eyes deceive me, or is that _relief_ I see in your expression?" he asked softly. She closed her eyes again as more tears ran down her face. "I'll take that as a yes," he whispered. "And why are you relieved, my girl?" he asked softly: keeping his voice low, almost soothing to her ears. His fingers continued to run through her hair. She took deep breaths as his fingers massaged her head. She tried to lowered her head, for a moment Eric's hand kept her from moving, but he allowed her head to fall onto his chest. His hand moved from her cheek to her shoulder: he began to massage her shoulders.

Slowly her sadness was turning into something far more dangerous. She let out a soft moan before she could stop herself. She quickly bite her bottom lip again, to keep herself from making noises. He used his hand on her head to tilt her head upwards. She felt his tongue lick at her teeth. She released her bottom lip from the bite, and he pressed his lips to hers.

_'Rogue, what the hell are you doing?'_ she asked herself as he pulled her closer to him. His tongue licked her lips: asking for permission to enter. She allowed herself a sane thought and refused to her open her mouth.

After a second he took the hint, and placed his lips back on hers: continuing to kiss her the way she currently approved.

After another moment or two of kissing, she putted back. Taking a deep breath as she opened her eyes, he moved his hand back to her cheek.

"Feeling any better?" he asked softly: keeping to the smoothing tone, as he stared into her eyes.

"Am I supposed to feel better?" she asked.

"I do not know," he said as his hand moved back into her hair. She closed her eyes, letting her head tilt forwards slightly as he started to massage her scalp again. "I take it that feels good," he said: she could hear the slightest trace of amusement in his voice.

"Yeah," she mumbled as he moved his other hand into her hair. Both of his hands were massaging her scalp and either side of her head. He kissed her forehead tenderly as his hands moved down the sides of her face: fingers rubbing at her neck. She felt his lips leave her forehead as he tilted her head upwards. He brushed his lips against hers. He groaned into her mouth as she moved forward pushing her lips against his.

One of his hands slid down her body until he was gripping her leg. He pulled at it until he pulled it over his body, causing her to, once again, be sitting on top of of him. She put her arms around his neck as she pulled herself closer to him. His hand moved to her back, rubbing, as he once again licked her lips. This time she parted her lips and allowed him to deepen the kiss.

_'You should stop this now before it goes too far,' _she told herself. One of his hands moved to her hip, pushing her against him. Their groins hitting each other perfectly and she felt a spark of pleasure go through her body._ 'It's already gone too far,'_ she told herself as let out a soft moan into his mouth. He moved his other hand to her hip, and pulled her against him: another spark of pleasure. _'Oh, God, I remember this feeling,' _she thought as he began to push his hips into hers. She broke the kiss. He moved his mouth to her neck: placing soft kisses as he moved against her.

She opened her eyes as her hands moved into his hair. She was trying desperately to fight the feelings he was bring out of her. Attempting to her control her breathing only caused her to gasp more. Trying to fight the heat that was growing between her legs only caused it to radiate through out her body.

_'All I have to do is say no... he'll stop, I know he will,' _she thought. She only sound she managed to make, however, was a scream as Eric bite her neck. He pushed into her one last time, letting out a loud groan as he came. He quickly move his hand to the zipper of her pants. His other hand wrapped around her waist as the zipper on her pants lowered. Within a second he flipped them over until he was on top of her, as his fingers slipped under her underwear and onto her clit. He became to rub her there as he stared into her eyes.

His face began to lose it's flushed color as a look of uncertainly crossed his expression. He paused, his fingers stopped their movement.

"Anna, do you wish for me to continue?" he asked gently. Her gasping slowly turned into soft sobs as she fought with the desire to nod her head. "Shh," he said as the hand from her waist came up and brushed the hair away from her forehead and eyes. "I am sorry," he uttered. "_You_ kissed _me_ this time. I thought... I was mistaken," he said as he removed his hand from her underwear. She felt the zipper, zip itself back up as he got off of her.

Rogue closed her eyes as she tears ran down her face. She didn't know which hurt more: knowing that she would have let him pleasure her again if he hadn't stopped, or the fact that she still wanted him to help her finish. She turned over on to her stomach, away from him, as she pressed her legs together.

"Anna?" Eric asked as he placed his hand on her shoulder.

"What the fuck is wrong with me?" she asked in anguish as she grabbed onto fist-fills of blanket. The heat of his hand on her bare skin only added to her conflict.

"Nothing, absolutely nothing," he uttered.

"You're wrong," she said in between sobs. "...I tried to kill you," she whispered.

"What?" he asked in confusion.

"When I... when I went to touch your face... I was going to... going to," she attempted to say. She turned back over to face him: he lifted his hand off of shoulder as she turned. She looked up at him as he placed his hand on her shoulder again. He was now sitting on the bed. "…and then less-" she tried to say in between gaps. "...less then five minutes after- ... I try to kill ya... you and me are....were kissing and... other things ... and... and... God....what the fuck is wrong with me?" she asked again as she closed her eyes. His hand moved to her cheek.

"My answer is still nothing," he said tenderly as he rubbed her cheek with his thumb. A small spike of pleasure ran through her body at the contact and his words. She pressed her legs together tighter than before: attempting to appease the burning between her legs. "Anna, you did not touch my face. You did not absorb me. You did not attempt to murder me. I did not give you the chance," he said with a small laugh before sighing. "Oh, my girl... my love," he said as he rubbed her cheek. She sucked in a breath at the endearment. "In order to have attempted murder you have to actually_ try_. Because I stopped you before you were even given the chance, all you are guilty of, Anna, is _contemplation,_" he said. She opened her eyes and looked up to see him smiling at her. "Many others have contemplated the death of another for much less of an offense than I am guilty of. I would not begrudge you that... Not that I wish to _encourage_ these thoughts, quite the opposite," he said with a small grin, "but you should not fault yourself for having them... given our situation."

"But I was going to-" she started to say.

"Absorb me," he finished. "Other than that, neither of us know what you would have done after you had touched me. I stopped you before we found out," he said as he brushed hair behind her ear.

"If you hadn't of woken up-" she started to say as he laid down next to her.

"But I did," he said as he lowered his head on to the pillow: his eyes bore into hers, as his hand remained on her cheek rubbing. "So, you did not," he said strongly. "So, we do not know what would have happened. Therefore, you do not have to worry yourself over it. I promise you, you will not get another chance," he said.

"That's comforting," she said sarcastically.

"Isn't it?" he asked with a smirk. She sniffled as she moved her head slightly into a more comfortable position. He moved his hand, from her cheek, into her hair: brushing it back. Another spark between her legs caused her discomfort to intensify. She took a deep breath, trying to ignore it. "Is that painful?" he asked as his other hand came to rest on knee.

"Yes," she admitted. His hand slid up an inch, coming closed to the area on her body that was causing her dismay.

"I could help you release that tension if you like," he said quietly, staring into her eyes.

"I told myself I wasn't going to let you do that again. Not while I was in my right mine," she said.

"I thought that was your concern with the last time I gave you pleasure. The fact that you were _not_ in your right mine," he said.

"It was," she answered breathlessly.

"But now you are?" he asked as he rubbed her thigh gently. She closed her eyes as she nodded. "You are already aroused. It would only take a moment for you to finish," he said. "...I could take away your pain," he whispered into her ear. His hot breath on her ear caused her breathing to become uneven. "Let me help you," he urged as his hand slid closer and closer and closer...

She quickly moved her hand onto his, stopping it's movements.

"But I suppose that is also one of your grievances," he whispered as moved his hand out of hers. "You tire of my help," he uttered as he grabbed at the fingertips of her glove: he slowly pulled it off of her hand. "You wish to be independent," he said as his fingers caressed her bare hand. "You wish to help yourself," he said as he took her hand in his. "So, help yourself," he said as he placed her hand in between her legs. She felt the zipper lower, and he pushed her two of her fingers against her underwear onto her clit.

Her eyes shot open as he began to use his fingers to move hers in just the right way. She felt her heartbeat race as he backed away from her ear. Their eyes made contact.

"I will stop, once you start to help yourself," he said.

_'So, you'll just lay there watching me masturbate?'_ she asked in her mind in disbelief.

Her mind flashed to a conversation she and Eric had had last Saturday:

_"You have, what's one more?" Eric had asked her._

_'What harm would_ _one more do?'_ she asked herself as she made a decision. She pulled her fingers out of her pants as she pressed her lips to his. He used his hand in her hair to pull her closer to him as his other hand slipped underneath her underwear. He placed his fingers on her clit as he broke the kiss.

"Have I misunderstood again?" he asked. She placed her hand on his over her underwear.

"What do you think?" she asked before pushing his fingers hard against her clit. He chuckled darkly as she let out a soft moan. She felt her bra unhook itself as he moved his hand from her hair onto her shoulder. He pushed her on her back as his fingers began to rub her clit slowly. She pressed her hand down on his again as she moaned, "Faster," breathlessly. He chuckled again as he used his free hand to remove hers.

"In a moment," he promised as he moved her hand above her head.

"Eric," she uttered as she moved her other hand onto his arm. "What are you-" she asked weakly as she looked up at her hand. He removed his hand from her underwear and grabbed her other hand off of his arm. He placed that one above her head as well. "What are you doing?" she asked. Her eyes widened in fear as she saw metal slid across the bed onto her hands: cuffing them together, pinning her to the bed. "I didn't," she started to say as she made eye contact. "I-"

"Is your answer still yes?" he asked as he moved his hand back to her underwear. "Would you like me to help you climax?" he asked he began to rub again. Her face flushed all over again.

"I didn't agree to that," she said faintly.

"I will make you feel good," he said as he used his free hand to lift her shirt up: exposing her bra. He manipulated the under-wire in her bra to lift it up. She felt the cuffs separate from one another.

"But only on your terms," she said quietly as she watched him remove the shirt and bra off of her completely.

"Precisely," he said with a smirk as he moved his hand to one of her breasts. "Do you consent?" he asked as he massaged her breast. She looked back up at him as she moaned.

"To what, exactly?" she asked.

"Excellent question," he said with a grin before he leaned down and kissed her. Her eyes closed as two of fingers slipped inside of her. "Nothing I hadn't done to you already," he said in a whisper as he hand began to move faster, and harder. He kissed her neck as she unconsciously moved with his hand. She felt his hand leave her breast as he replaced it with his mouth. She screamed as his teeth bite her nipple softly. Her head tossed back and forth as he brought her closer and closer to the edge.

"Nothing you hadn't offered before," he whispered as he pushed his fingers into her one last time. Her body arched into his hand; her body fighting against the cuffs, needing room to move, to stretch, as she came. She buckled against his hand a few more times as a delicious warmth radiated throughout her entirely body. She leaned her head to the right as she felt his hand slip our of her underwear. Her eyes remained closed during the aftermath of the climax. She took deep breaths attempting to regain control over herself.

About two minutes later she was still unable to control her breathing. She felt his hand on her face as he brushed sweat drenched hair off of her face. He kissed her then: she barely had the energy to respond. He chuckled as he pulled back. Hid hand slid down her face and slowly down to her breasts. She gasped as his thumb rubbed her nipple. She barely felt his hand seizing her pants and underwear pulling them off of her. She felt his hand move onto her other breast and he began to massage it. She gasped as she felt something rubbing against her clit. She managed to open her eyes, to see Eric towering over top her nude. He leaned down and kissed her. Taking advantage of her open mouth his tongue explored: enticing a moan out of her. His hand ran down her body: resting on her thighs as he pulled them apart.

She pulled her head back against the pillow: attempting to break the kiss. Thankfully, Eric noticed and pulled back an inch: allowing her to breath and speak.

"Eric," she managed to gasp.

"Do you object?" he asked his hands rubbed her thighs. Rogue stared into his eyes as she attempted to think about his questions. She was dumbstruck. "Do you object?" he asked again softly.

Conversations from the past began to flash in her mind:

"It would be stupid of me to let you touch me," she whispered.

"_Would it?" he asked softy. _

"_Yes," she uttered. _

Flash

"_You don't willingly have sex with you're captor," Rogue screamed. _

"_But, you want to," Eric retorted _

"_Yes! I want to, but that doesn't matter," she shouted._

"_Why?" he asked. _

"_Because it's just wrong," she claimed. _

Flash

"_Just this once, Anna," Eric said breathlessly._

"_Give in?" she asked softly._

"_To something we both desperately crave."_

Flash

_"You don't have to be ashamed of relishing my touch," Eric told her gently. "You say no when it matters."_

"_It always matters," she said._

Rogue opened her eyes. Peering up at him she took a deep breath.

"I _don't_ want to do this," she said.

"Are you certain?" he asked.

"Yes," she said strongly. She felt the metal cuffs remove themselves, freeing her hands.

"Perhaps another time," he said softly as he got off of her, and the bed.

"Not likely," she mumbled as she pulled the covers over her body, turning her back on him. He chuckled darkly at her comment.

"I did not attempt to manipulate you this time," he said from behind her. She heard the draw to the dresser open.

"That's why I said no," she said.

"To _one,_ not all of my advances," he pointed out as he closed the dresser door. He sauntered across the room. She watched him walk up her, still nude: holding his clean clothes in one hand. He knelled down, in front of her, next to the bed. He moved his free hand into her face, once again, brushing hair away from her forehead. "You are more susceptible to my tactics than you would like to believe," he said before he kissed her forehead. "Not that I mind having the ability to seduce you, but do not fool yourself into thinking that you are immune to my ploys. Yesterday morning you chose truth over a facade. I intend to give you what you've chosen," he finished before standing up.

"Yesterday?" she repeated to herself quietly as he walked towards the bathroom door. She sat up taking the blanket with her: keeping herself covered."That was this morning," she said in confusion. "Today's Saturday... right?" she asked in a panic. He chuckled as he entered the bathroom door.

"We will talk about this after we have both showered," he said as he turned to look at from inside the bathroom. "Although we should not stay up talking too late. You do have school tomorrow," he said with a smirk before he closed the door. Her eyes widened at the realization. If he had kept her unconscious the rest of Saturday and as much of today as he wanted, then he only woke her up when he wanted to be awake.

"Eric," she yelled as she stood up, grabbing the blanket with her. She started to run to the door. She was stopped by the blanket getting struck on the side of the bed. She twisted her body to see where the blanket was caught. Pulling it, she managed to get it loose. She pulled it around her body again as she marched up to the door. "Eric," she screamed as her fist banged on the door. "You weren't asleep were you? You son of a bitch," she yelled as she continued to bang. The door opened, Eric stared down at her.

"If you are so eager to have this conversation: you are welcome to join me," he offered as he opened the door slightly. His comment caused her to pause. He had just asked her to take a shower with him. Her face flushed.

"I'll... I'll wait," she said meekly.

"On the bed... quietly," he said. There was a look in his eyes, warning her, telling her to obey him.... or else.

She slowly backed away from the door, backing into the bed. Wordlessly, she stared up at him from her seat on the edge of the bed.

"Good girl," he said with a smirk before he closed the door.

* * *

So, what do you guys think? Please let me know! REVIEW!!!!!

Quick note: I was rethinking the plot of the story verse the time-line of the show and I realized that among all the little continuity errors this fic has from the beginning of the fic towards the latter chapters: there is one continuity error that spans across the entire fic (Operation Repartee included!)!

In the show from the episode "On Angel's Wings" all the way from to the end of the third season is only six months!!!! I proclaimed three chapters ago that Magneto was holding Rogue captive for half a year.

You can see where my problem is...

Okay, out of all the continuity errors in this story, I have to say, this is probably the one I care about the most. Let's face it: my love of writing ridiculously complicated plots (in this case) working it way around the setting of the cartoon, (a whole lot of sexual tension + reviews ^.^) is the reason I'm still writing this fic.

But here's my question, before I go and rewatch some of season two and all the episodes of season three (not that that's a chore :p) to develop a coherent time-line that my story will follow, **who besides me cares?** Hands up people! I want to take a head count.

Who cares that the show put a ridiculous amount of event into such a short period of time? Was it just me or did a month go by in the episode "Walk on the Wide Side" alone? Who cares that the mansion was destroyed and rebuilt in what couldn't have been more than two months max?!?

Who among you, besides me, cares that only six months pass in between "On Angel's Wings" and the end of the third season, and that the time-line in the fic is nothing but wrong given the time-line of the show? I have to admit, I do care... more than I should. But I want to know who else does...

So, please review and give me your opinions!!!!!

(Did I say QUICK note? My mistake...)

Speaking of which:

LadyNorth76: Thanks!!! Hope this was soon enough! I hope you loved this chapter, and I hope to hear from you again.

Warrioroftheseventhstar: I'm glad you enjoyed it!!!! I hope you liked this chapter!!! Thanks for the review ^.^ I hope to hear from you again.

Death-Is-Watching: Awww! Thanks! And I know what you mean. I write this fic when I should be sleeping!!! Thank you for putting my fic on your story alert and thank you so much for the review! It make my day when I read it! I hope I hear from you again!

Crazyjess09: Aww! Thank you! I'm so glad you loved the last chapter! And YES!!!! about your comment on picturing what's happening. Description was always my weak point (It still needs some work) but your comment validates my own view on my improvement!!! Thanks for that! I hope you really enjoyed what there was to picture in this chapter! I hope to hear from you again!

Aquofthe4: Thanks for putting both my fics on your favorite story list!!!


	20. Chapter 20

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Twenty

Rogue looked at herself in the mirror as she brushed her hair. The mirror was still a little foggy from the shower she had just taken, but she could still see herself alright. She let out a sigh as she lowered the brush to the sink's counter. She was ready to leave the bathroom, but she didn't want to. Before she had been eager to yell at Eric, but now she knew he wasn't going to allow her that. She wasn't sure she wanted to have this conversation.

She gasped as she heard a knock at the door.

"Anna, you turned off the blow dryer, well, over five minutes ago," Eric said through the door. "You have ten seconds before I unlock this door myself," he warned her. She rolled her eyes with a sigh as she walked to the door. She opened it and stared up at him. "Your shower took longer than I had thought it would," he said.

"And?" she asked annoyed.

"You have school in the morning. We do not have time for this conversation tonight," he said.

"It's only nine a'clock," she pointed out.

"Anna," he said as he leaned forward in the doorway: ignoring her statement. "I will not be here tomorrow morning to escort you through your events. So, to avoid any misunderstanding allow me to inform you how your day is going to transpire. You will go to bed. Tomorrow morning you will wake up and endue the danger room with your teammates. You will go to school. You will come home from school. You will do your homework, and eat dinner. By the time you have finished eating I should be back, and then we shall have this conversation. What you will not do in my absences is anything that will cause unwanted attention to you or our situation: or else," he said firmly.

"You sure don't act like a man who's in love," she mumbled.

"We will discuss that tomorrow night... Do we have an understanding?" he asked.

"Yes," she said slowly.

"Good," he said as he leaned forward and kissed her forehead. "Sleep well," he said as he back away from her.

"Well, now that I have your permission, I'll get right on that," she mumbled sarcastically. He chuckled as he sauntered to the door.

"There's quite a bit of truth to that comment," he said as he made it to the door. Her eyes narrowed: there was truth in it, and she didn't like it one bit. "Save it for tomorrow, Anna," he said as he opened the door. Rogue let out a sigh as he left the room. She walked over to the bed and let her body collapse onto it.

Rogue had a feeling tomorrow was going to be another long day...

* * *

And she was right...

Rogue sighed as she looked across Bayville High's lunch room. It was only fifth period but already the day felt too, too long. The danger room this morning had tired her out. The fact that she hadn't been training as much as the others only added to her handicap during the sessions.

Pretending that everything was fine had become even more difficult. Especially with the knowledge that the Professor was gone. Rogue found sitting across from her Mother at breakfast and not being able to scream out what she knew annoying, and depressing.

_'But there's nothing I can do about it,'_ she thought as she looked down at her lunch: a look of disgust crossed her face. _'They call _this_ food,'_ she thought in disbelief.

"What's eating you, moody girl?" Risty asked. Rogue turned around to see Risty Wilde standing behind her. Rogue smiled. It was good to see her friend. Hanging out with Risty almost made her feel normal.

"Where were you all last week?" Rogue asked as Risty sat down next to her.

"Parents made me fly home for some boring family event. Took a week! Can you believe it? Anyway, what have I missed?" Risty asked quickly.

"Aren't you currently missing history?" Rogue asked with a grin.

"What's one more class?" Risty asked with a smirk. Risty's eyes lite up, "What two or three more classes? I'll catch up later this week, and you little miss genius can afford to miss a class or two,"

"We can't ditch," Rogue said.

"Why not?" Risty asked putting her hand on her arm, and pulling her playfully. "You've been getting straight A's all month. Wish I knew your secret," she said with a grin.

_'And I wish I could tell you Risty,'_ Rogue thought to herself sadly. "I can't ditch," she said again.

"Give me one good reason," Risty demanded.

_'Eric would...' _ Rogue started to replay Eric's words in her mind.

"Hey," Risty said loudly. Rogue blinked a few times when you realized that Risty was snapping her fingers in front of her face. "Snap out of it," she said loudly. "...Where do you go?" she asked quietly: her voice filled with concern.

"Sorry," Rogue mumbled. "I was relivin-" she started to say before she recalled who she was talking to. "Sorry..." she muttered again.

"Don't worry about it," Risty said slowly. "…Come on. We'll go out and get _real _food. Lunch, my treat," she offered with a smile.

"...I shouldn't," Rogue said as she looked over at Risty.

"Oh, come on, Rogue. I can't imagine spending the whole day in classes. Neither can you. Let's get lunch and catch up. I feel like it's been forever since we've talked," she said.

Rogue smiled at her friend sadly. It had been at least over a week. She had not spoken to Risty since the Friday before last. Rogue sighed. So, much had happened since then. Her whole life has turned upside down about twenty times by Eric since then. And sadly she couldn't talk to Risty about any of it.

"Please," Risty said dragging out the syllables. Rogue looked over at Risty.

_'...Eric didn't actually say what he would do if I don't do what he said...' _Rogue thought_. 'If I go out with Risty now, I could get back here before the end of the day and Eric would never have to know...'_ she thought with a smile. _'But that's probably a very bad idea,' _she thought before sighing.

"Please," she said again. "I'll be your best friend," Risty offered with a grin. Rogue let out a soft laugh.

"... alright you convinced me," Rogue said with a smirk.

"Yes," Risty exclaimed. "Let's have some fun," she said as she stood up, grabbing Rogue's arm she pulled her up with her.

* * *

Twenty minutes later they were both in Risty's car driving down Bayville Ave.

Rogue had the window rolled down. Her elbow rested on the window: her chin supported by her hand. She took a deep breath: taking in the ocean air. It wasn't very often that she came to this side of the town. Rogue usual didn't like being this close to the beach. It's presences severed as a reminder of the limitation she had to put on herself for the world's sake. But this week, everything she looked at reminded her of the limitations Magneto had put on her life. Having to cover up on the beach didn't seem so bad any more.

And although Rogue was trying to enjoy herself she couldn't help but be nervous. She was completely aware of her surroundings: every time she saw a man with white hair she flinched. The fear of Eric finding her was paramount in her thoughts. Part of her just wanted to go back to school and go to classes. At least there she didn't have to worry about incurring Magneto's wraith. She wasn't even sure what that punishment would be exactly, and given her memories of his life and her overactive imagination... some of the scenarios that were running through her head...

A shiver ran down Rogue's spine. She took a deep breath, trying to shake off her fear.

Rogue really didn't want to find out what he would do to her... or her family...

_'It's not like I've haven't done everything he told me to do,' she thought to herself. Some how she had a feeling Eric wouldn't agree with her explanation for her actions. Which was why he could not find out about this. _

"Remember I have to be back before the end of school. I can't have anyone knowing I skipped classes," Rogue said.

"Alright, alright," Risty said dismissively as she pulled into one of the few parking spaces in front of The Breakers restaurant. "Could you relax just a little?" she asked as Rogue looked around the area. There were only a few people across the street. Some riding their bikes along the beach, others just walking. Her gaze shifted to the restaurant next door to the one they were going to. The doors to the Shipwreck tavern opened. Rogue's eyes widened as she saw her brother, Graydon, coming out of the restaurant.

"No, I can't" she said as she pulled at Risty arm. What were she chances that Risty would pick the one restaurant in Bayville that her brother happened to be dinning at? _ 'Why me?'_ she asked herself as she lowered herself out of site: pushing Risty down with her.

"Hey," Risty yelled.

"Quiet," Rogue whispered as she lifted her head high enough to look outside.

"Who are we hiding from?" Risty asked as she started to sit up.

"Stay down," Rogue screamed as she pulled at Risty's arm again.

"Is one of your instructors here?" she asked.

"No, my brother," Rogue said quickly as she watched Graydon walk along the sidewalk away from Risty's car.

"Why do you care if _Kurt _sees you? He's ditching too," Risty said with a grin.

"My other brother," she uttered.

"What?" Risty asked incredulously as she glanced up from her seat. Risty's eyes widened as she and Rogue stared at him. "What's Graydon doing here?" she asked quietly.

"I don't know but we need to get out here now," Rogue said her voice filled with fear.

"I couldn't agree more," a voice from the backseat of the car. Both Rogue and Risty turned around.

Rogue gasped as she saw Emma Frost sitting with her arms crossed over her chest.

"Spying?" Emma asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Ditching school," Rogue said firmly. "I had not idea you two were here," she said.

"Us three," Emma corrected. Rogue eyes widened in fear. If Magneto found her here, now. This was definitely what he would consider unwanted attention.

"I didn't mean anything by this. I just wanted to hang out with my friend. Blow off a little steam," Rogue said.

"Does someone want to explain to me what the bloody hell is going on?" Risty asked.

"Not especially," Emma said as Rogue looked over at Risty: a dazed look took over Risty's expression. "It's better if she does not remember this conversation," Emma said sternly.

Rogue sighed as she thought, _'She probably right.' _ Rogue watched Risty mindlessly face front.

"Does Magneto know I'm here?" Rogue asked.

"Of course," Emma said with a short laugh. "And he's not pleased with how you've disobeyed him," she said.

"...Technically, I haven't," she said softly.

Emma chuckled lightly before saying, "As much as I would_ love_ to hear that one I have more important work to be doing. So, Risty here is going to drive you back to school. She will not be joining you-"

"Why?" Rogue asked interrupting her. "What are you going to do to her? I don't understand," she said quickly.

"It's not for you to understand. Just _obey_," Emma said strongly.

"I can't just let you take my friend somewhere. She's got nothing to do with all this. She just in the wrong place at the wrong time. She's-" Rogue ranted.

"Anna," said a voice behind her. Rogue's entire body froze in fear at the sound of Magneto's voice in her ear. "Ms. Wilde is going to be put on a plane back to England. No harm will befall her. Emma would have informed you of that, had you allowed her to finish her sentence," Eric said: his breath hot on her ear.

"Why?" Rogue whispered.

"Because I ordered Emma to inform you of Ms. Wilde travel arrangements. Unlike you, she knows how to listen to a command."

"Blindly," Rogue muttered before she could stop herself. Emma eyes narrowed as she stared at Rogue in anger.

Rogue flinched as one of the back doors and the driver's door opened by themselves.

"Emma take Ms. Wilde to her flight," Eric ordered. Rogue noticed his voice seemed further away then a moment ago.

"Yes, sir," Emma said immediately as she slid of the car through the open door. Rogue watched as Risty stood up out of the car. Rogue took a deep breath as she faced front: she watched Eric cross the front of the car. Emma and Risty walked up to a silver car.

It was then Rogue noticed Graydon staring at her. She gazed at him with wide eyes: pleading at him to interfere, to help her. He gave her a sympathetic look before shrugging. He broke his gaze with her as he started to get into the drivers seat of the car.

Her line of sight of her brother was cut off as Eric took Risty's place in the driver's seat. She flinched again as he used his powers to close both doors. Rogue gasped as her seat's belt moved by itself over her shoulder and across her waist: trapping her in the seat.

"Tell me, Anna," he stared to say as he turned to face her, "which part of my instructions were not clear?" he asked: his tone clearly irate.

"I..." Rogue took a deep breath: fighting her fear. "...I was just going out to lunch with a friend," she said softly. "I wasn't trying to get any unwanted attention from..." she stopped to take a deep breath as an idea came to mind. "From anyone. Risty would have known something was wrong with me if she wasn't able to talk me into cutting class. She would have wanted to hang out after school. When the two of us hang out we spend _hours_ together talking about everything... at least everything I can talk to her about. If I tried to get out of cutting with her she would have asked me what was wrong. There's no way she would have accepted me saying I was fine like everyone else does. She knows me better than that," she finished.

"And that is the reason you chose to leave school?" he asked. She took another deep breath.

"Yes," she uttered. Rogue could feel her heart racing as he stared at her.

"... Your body language tells me otherwise," he said as he reached over and traced his fingers down the side of her face. She fought with the urge to pull away from him. "The sweat on you face... the tension in your hands... your frozen posture," he said as his fingers lightly took hold of her chin. "What they tell me," he said as he turned her head to face him, "is that you are _lying_," he said as his eyes made contact with hers.

"Or maybe I'm like this cause I'm _afraid_ of what a control freak like you would do to me if you thought I disobeyed you," she suggested. Her eyes widened as she realized what she had said. Control Freak? _'Do you have a death wish or something?' _she asked herself in disbelief.

She focused on his face again as she realized he was grinning.

"No," he said while softly shaking his head. "That would account for the justification you thought of when questioned about your actions... Not a bad explanation either... Plausible," he said slowly as he studied her face. "How long did it take you think of?" he asked.

"I..." she struggled to say. The question took her completely by surprise. What did it matter how long it took? "I don't..."

"A second? Two seconds?" he asked.

"Hmm... maybe five," she mumbled.

"Five seconds?" he asked gently: his thumb rubbing against the side of neck.

"I- I think so," she whispered.

"Impressive," he uttered: his eyes consumed with pride.

"...So, your not angry?" she asked. He chuckled before he leaned in and kissed her lightly.

"No, I am not angry," he said with a smirk as he released her chin. She let out a sigh of relief as she leaned back against the seat. "However, I wouldn't suggest doing that again," he said nonchalantly as leaned back as well: starting the car.

"Cutting classes," she said.

"Breaking a promise," he said as he backed out of the parking space and onto Bayville Ave.

"I didn't," she said as she looked over at him.

"Yes, you did," he said firmly. "Last night you agreed to my terms-" he said.

"And I followed them," she exclaimed.

"No you did not," he said.

"Yes, I did. You told me to go to sleep, wake up and to endure the danger room. I did all that. You told me to go to school. I did that too. I was gonna get back to school with Risty before the day ended. No one was gonna know. I was gonna go home from school, do my homework and eat dinner just like you told me to. You never said I had to go all my classes. You never told me to go to _any_ of my classes. I did everything I agreed to. It's not my fault you didn't tell me to go to class," she finished ranting.

Her eyes widened in fear as he pressed his foot on the gas. The car started to gain speed, and her hand grabbed onto the armrests of her seats: needing something to hold onto. At the speed he drove she was thankful for the seat beat keeping her in place. Rogue felt like her heart was in her throat as he abruptly pulled over into a driveway. She took deeps breaths as she attempted to ignore the beeping horns of several cars as they drove past.

She stared at Eric incredulously as he leaned back against his seat. She watched him exhale deeply: his eyes becoming distant. She knew he was deep in thought.

"Eric?" she asked quietly: hoping to gain his attention.

He ignored her: closing his eyes.

"...Max?" she asked.

"Be quiet, Anna, and let me think," he said firmly.

_'This is- This is not good,' _she thought to herself.

* * *

After what seemed like an hour he opened his eyes and looked over at her. She stared up at him in fear.

"You were right. It is not your fault," he said calmly. She let out a sigh in relief.

"I am sorry," she said meekly. "It was a mistake. A stupid mistake. I won't make it again," she promised as she watched him lean forward, placing his hands on the wheel.

"No, you won't," he said as he turned the car back and backed out of the driveway, onto Bayville Ave. There was a tone to his voice that she was afraid to name.

"...I'm sorry if I kept you from anything important. I didn't mean to," she said.

"I know that was not your intention, Anna," he said. She stared at his face: searching.

He was angry. But it didn't seem to be directed at her.

Rogue took a deep breath as she realized what that expression meant.

"Why are you angry at yourself?" she asked. She watched his expression change: lighten. He smiled softly. "Eric?" she asked confused.

"...It has many years since I have been in the company of someone who knows me so well. The only other person who's understood me... was Magda," he said.

"Did you ever find her?" Rogue asked quietly. She watched his expression change into one of confusion. "I never looked at those memories," she explained.

"...I found her headstone," he uttered darkly. Rogue felt tears start to form at the thought.

He had spend years searching for Magda after their daughter had died in the fire. He had forsaken his own name in order to travel safely. He had crossed into several countries. Never resting, always moving in hopes of finding his wife, his love. To have all those years of searching end in a graveyard.

She closed her eyes for a moment, letting a few tears run down her face.

"I'm sorry," she whispered. She watched his hand leave the wheel and move onto her shoulder.

"That is not your fault either," his eyes made contact with hers though the rear-view mirror. She placed her hand over his: their fingered intertwined. He slowly pulled the car over to the side of the road: all the while his gaze never left hers.

He leaned towards her and kissed her forehead: her eyes closed at the contact.

"You are an amazing girl, Anna Marie. Thank you," he uttered before he kissed her forehead again. He backed away an inch, so he could look into her eyes. "I can not tell you how long it has been since someone has looked at me the way you do," he said his other hand came up to rest on her cheek. "You know what I am capable of better than any other person alive. You know my past. All the sins I have commit against the world... against you. And you know... you know, my girl... that I am only getting _started_. But still... still you shed _tears_ for my pain," he said as he wiped tears off of her face with his fingers. "You _feel_ my pain. No other in your position would be willing to _empathize_ with a monster such as I," he finished.

"Your not a monster," she whispered.

"I'm not?" he asked tenderly.

"No," she said, shaking her head lightly. He smiled.

"Then what am I?" he asked

"...Human," she said. Silence fell between them as he stared into her eyes.

After a moment, he kissed her softly. He releasing his hold on her face. His fingers gently disjointed from hers as he leaned back against his seat.

"I'm going to return you to the institute now," he said as he made a U-Turn back onto Bayville Ave.

She looked at him in confusion. They were headed in the opposite direction as before.

"Wait. If you weren't taking me back to the institute before, where were we going?" she asked.

"It does not matter. I changed my mind," he said.

"But you could change it back," she said.

"Not today. You have my word," he said looking into her eyes through the rear-view mirror again. She nodded. "Anna, do yourself a favor. As I'm certain you realized by now, I'm not going to let you go anytime in the near future. So, sit back and enjoy the ride a little... I'm not telling you to stop asking questions or to stop attempting to find a way out of our situation. Because I enjoy your questions, and there is no way out. What I am advising you to do... is realize that there will be times where you will find this captivity to be bearable. Quiet moments that you can take advantage of. Where you can relax just a little. Things in Bayville are going to change... soon. What I am telling you is _enjoy_ the quiet moments. They will not last," he said.

"When are things gonna change?" she asked. He laughed.

"You didn't listen to a word I just said," he said with a smile.

"Yes, I did," she exclaimed."Not today. You have my word. Anna do yourself a favor-" she started to quote.

"Alright," he said with a laugh. "You heard every word of it. But that doesn't mean you listened," he said.

"Could you define the word listen? Cause silly me, I always thought it was a _synonym _to the word hear. But I must be wrong," she said over Eric's laughter.

She looked over at him while he laughed. His face seemed gentle... kind. This was the man she had spend hours with: laughing... playing... kissing...

"... Why do I like you?" she mumbled as she started out the window.

"You know the answer to that question."

"Stockholm syndrome," she said dryly.

"No. That disorder develops when a captive needs a way to escape their fear of their captor."

"You been me holding me captive since Christmas last year," she pointed out.

"Yes, but you did not know that until I told you. You did not fear until last Saturday. The feelings you have developed when we were working together on your powers. What happens to them now: yes, that's stockholm syndrome. But the _founding_ of our relationship was not. It is not the reason you like me," he said.

"Then what is?" she asked.

"I was hoping you would tell me. I have to admit, I've been quite curious... Why do you like me?" he asked.

"I don't know... Your charming... charismatic... funny," she said.

"For some reason you think it's hilarious when I use profanities," he said with a smile.

"What? It is," she exclaimed as she looked over at him. He chuckled lightly. "There's something about your voice. Something respectable... regal even, and when you say ridiculous things like-"

"Shit," he said with a grin.

"Yes,"she said with a smile rolling her eyes.

"Asshole...Jackass... Crap," he said.

"Stop it," she laughed, she hit his arm playfully. He continued to laugh.

"I say words like that all the time. It's not a big deal for me. But you... you never say-"

"Bastard," he said with a smirk.

"Okay you used it twice last week, and it's only cause I said it first," she said with a small laugh. "... I just... I think it's funny. And you think it's funny that I think it's funny, and... and I think your an asshole," she said with a smile staring out the window. He chuckled.

She sighed as she staring out her window. There were trees on both sides of the road: offering shade to any who passed beneath them. At the slow speed Eric was driving the car, the wind was just right, blowing her hair back: it was refreshing.

After a moment she turned to look at him. He was relaxed smile on his face.

"This one of those quiet moments you were talking about?" she asked with a small smile.

"Yes," he replied. "... Are you enjoying it?" he asked.

"Yeah," she said with a smile.

"Thank you for listening," he said turning for a moment to met her gaze. "Or hearing," he said as he turned his attention back to the road, "which ever you prefer," he said playfully with a smirk. She couldn't help but laugh softly as she leaned back against her seat.

After her laughter died down: a comfortable silence fell between them for the rest of the ride. He continued to drive and she continued to enjoy her surroundings.

She hated to admit it, but that car ride was the most relaxed she had been in a while.

Unfortunately, for her: it was the most relaxation she would get for months...

* * *

So that's it for now!!!

I hope everyone enjoyed it!!! Please let me know!!! Reviews make me spend more time on this fic!!!!

As for the time-line thing. I'm not going to go back and change anything. I'm just going to avoid using large measurements of time to describe stuff. At least until the end of season three. After that I can do anything I want time wise. So, forget the whole six months thing for how long Eric's been holding her captive. It was about two. I'm just not going to mention it in the fic anymore. So, that's that.

REVIEW!!!!!! … please... ^.^

* * *

LadyNorth76: ^.^ Thanks for the review!!!!! I hope this was soon enough and hope you loved it! Please let me know!!!!

Warrioroftheseventhstar: I hope you loved this chapter!!!! Time-line issue been worked out. I'm going to pretty much ignore it. Since no one really cares. Which is fine by me. By the way loved all this!

"Really amusing how Rogue forgets he is always in control until he makes some comment about it, after the fact when she thought she had the upper hand."

That was the entire point of the chapter, and you summed it up in one sentence!!!! Kudos! Thanks for the kind words, and I hope to here from you again!!!!

Crazyjess09: HAPPY BIRTHDAY....AGAIN!!!!!!!!! He didn't man-handle her or anything sorry. They were in a car... But he did have her trapped in a seat unable to get up for like half a chapter. So, that's something.

Hoped you loved it! Please let me know!!!!!!!

Death-Is-Watching: I agree completely!!!!! And I'm glad I brightened up your week. I hope this chapter does too! Thanks for the review and I hope to hear from you again!!!

MalfoysMudbloodPet: I updated!!!! ...two days later then I said I was going to in the message I sent... sorry about that... Anyway, once again I would just like to state how awesome I think you are for reading everything is a short amount of time, and I hope you loved this chapter!!!! Please let me know what you think about it!!!!

Daughter of the Black: Thanks for the story alert!!!!


	21. Author's Note 2

Hey all. I'm sorry, this isn't a update!!!

This is another author's note. :sigh:

Here's what's going on. I am having trouble writing TR 21. A lot of trouble. I've written over 15 pages of drafts: 3 main idea: and 8 different version of the chapter. :Sigh:

Rather than attempt to write this chapter and go back and forth between ideas like I have been for almost two week: I figured, I would present these three main ideas to all of you, and then you guys can vote on which you would like happen. Once I have an idea of what you all would like to read (after a restriction is put on my writing) I will have an easier time writing the chapter.

So here are the ideas:

**1:** Right after the car ride Rogue and Magneto go back to Rogue's second bedroom and have an argument.

Pro: I continue with the fic and it's plot as I've written it.

Con: I'm having a little trouble writing out the scene. The mood of the chapter is kind of weird at this point. Obviously, I would continue to play with the conversation until its works)

**2:** A few days pass and the conversation would begin with Magneto telling Rogue that he is going to pick her up after school. Rogue will understandably freak out.

Pro: The plot will move on pass the stalemate they have been in for the last few chapters and move on to the next episode of the show.

Con: I will be contradicting the last line of the TR 20 "Unfortunately, for her: it was the most relaxation she would get for months..." because I will say that the next few days were fulled with quiet moments where she and Eric didn't talk about anything that matters. Leading into her freaking out when he changes the routine they developed over three days.

**3:** Magneto and Rogue continue to have their interaction in the car about forty minutes of driving later. It will most likely be another seduction scene. This chapter will be told from Magneto's point of view, because that's how I started to write it and I like what I have so far. The outcome of this chapter is uncertain, but I know it will most likely be epic and emotionally charged.

Pro: Seduction scenes are fun ^.^ You will see the story for the first time from Magneto's point of view: which might answer some questions about his character, and you might find this interesting.

Con: Since it's from Magneto's point of view it will answer some questions about his character and that will remove some of the mystery about his motives and frame of mind. (I consider this both a pro and a con. I have to admit this choice is the main reason why I'm asking for your opinion. I could rewrite this chapter from Rogue's point of view...

**4:** Choice 3 but rewritten to Rogue's point of view.

Pro: it will continue the story in the point of view that I started it and have written all of it in so far. Magneto's frame of mind will remain a mystery.

Con: It will take me longer to write. I started writing this chapter from Magneto's point of view because I was having trouble decision what he was going to do and I need to keep writing it in his point of view to get to the next part of the story (Unless more people choose #2, then I will move on with the plot in the next chapter). Magneto's frame of mind will remain a mystery. (Yup, both a pro and a con. Would you please give me your opinion on this issue?)

Once again, I'm probably over thinking all of this but please bare with me and vote on which you would like to happen the most. Answering the review with one number will suffice. However, I would greatly appreciate anyone who would explain why or why didn't choice a scenario. Any feedback on these choices would be awesome!!!

So, the voting will start from the moment I post this to Monday night. I have some free time on Tuesday morning so I'll be able to continue working on the choice with the most votes.

Thank you!!!!


	22. Chapter 21

I decided not to delete the authors note, because I afraid that some people wouldn't be able review again if they wanted to. And as we all know I love the reviews! So, that's what I did. Prepare for confusion! Chapter 22 is really chapter 21... actually that's not that's confusing.

Thank you to everyone that voted. It was really close. Super close! One vote decided the election! WEEE!

Anyway, on with the fic!

Please Enjoy,

* * *

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Twenty One

Magneto stool a quick glance at Anna through the rear-view mirror as they continued driving down Bayville Ave. Nearly an hour had passed since they had fallen into silence. They both knew that he had driven them the long way around Bayville. And much to his surprise, Anna had kept silent the whole time. He let out a quiet sigh as he made a turn off of the road and onto a dirt road leading into the woods. The relaxed expression on her face slowly started to fade as she viewed her surroundings.

"Eric, where are we going?"she asked quietly as they drove further into the woods. He kept his gaze forward on the road, choosing not to give her an answer.

_'At least not yet,_' he thought to himself. _'Take a minute, my girl, and let your fears rise to the surface,_' he thought. She turned to look at him. Out of the corner of his eye he could see her facial expression: panic mixed with anxiety. _'Perfect,'_ he thought as he stopped the car. They were now in the middle of the woods. Even in the daylight, he couldn't see the road they had come from anyone.

"Eric?" she asked again as he turned to look at her.

"You don't recognize it?" he asked with a soft smile. He watched her expression shift slightly. '_I wonder if you know how much of an affect my smile has on you,'_ he thought as he continued to disarm her with his kind expression. She slowly shook her head no. "... We are a mile or so from the institute," he told her using the kindest tone he could mutter. "You could hardly explain your possession of Ms. Wilde's car. Someone will come later to retrieve it. For now, we're going to get out of sight and then fly the rest of the way back to the institute," he informed her.

"Oh," she said as she let out a sigh in relief. He smiled at her relieved expression. Despite claiming that she distrusted him, his girl was quick to believe his statement. It was an interesting paradox to her behavior that he enjoyed observing.

Unable to help himself he leaned towards her and ran his hand down the side of the her cheek. He watched her face brush, and her eyes widen slightly. She slowly moved her hand onto the seat-belt's buckle: no doubt attempting to free herself from its restraint. Using his powers he kept the button from releasing the seat belt. He suppressed the urge to chuckle as he heard her suck in a breath.

He could hear how shallow her breaths were becoming as he moved his fingers to run through her hair. He began to rub her scalp the same way he had yesterday. Her reaction was similar: her eyes slowly fluttered closed.

His stopped observing her for a moment as he surveyed the area: there was no one in sight.

_'Why not?'_ he asked himself with a smirk as he turned his attention back to slightly aroused girl in front of him. Using his hand in her hair to turn her face towards him: he leaned forward placing his lips on her forehead. He heard her gasp as he placed his free hand on her right side: rubbing up and down her side. Barely a minute into the seduction and already her skin was warming to his touch: he could feel the heat her body was given off even through two layers of cloth.

_'How long will it take you to admit that you never wish to live without this, I wonder? ... Or me, for that matter?'_ he asked Rogue in his thoughts. He chuckled at his own folly before he brought his lips to hers: closing his eyes. Addressing his thoughts to her had become a bad habit of his. He was almost certain that one day she would absorb him again and that when she did she would relive these memories from his point of view. He knew that his recollection of these events would fade, but she would remember his words forever.

Once he felt her participating in the kiss he grabbed at the hems of her shirts: pulling them out from under the seat-belt. He slipped his hand underneath her shirts, caressing her stomach: slowly working his way up to her breasts. He paused for a moment as he felt her hands on his cheek.

_'Are you attempting to stop me?'_ he asked as he broke the kiss, and opened his eyes.

"What are we doing?" she asked staring into his eyes.

"Isn't it obvious?" he asked with a smile. He watched her take deep breaths: attempting to calm herself._ 'I think not, Anna,'_ he thought as he moved his hand onto her cheek. He rubbed her skin with his thumb: counteracting her attempts to fight these feelings._ 'I rather like you in this state,'_ he thought as his hand progressed onto her breast. She gasped, staring up at him with wide eyes. "Would you rather be doing something else?" he asked.

"That's not the point," she muttered breathlessly.

"Then what is?" he asked as he massaged her breast. His thumb rubbing over her nipple every few seconds was causing her to sharpy inhale. It took him a considerable amount of effort to not climb on top of her right then.

"You..." she started to say before pausing to take a deep breath. " ...You said that you... were taking me back to the institute," she uttered as she breathed deeply. The contractions of her breath was causing her breast to push against his hand every few seconds: a motion that did not go unnoticed by either of them.

"And I will," he promised staring into her eyes. "I gave you my word and I intend to keep it. However, for the moment I would like to enjoy this... and everything about your physical demeanor suggests that you would as well," he said before he leaned in and kissed her again. He could feel her resisting him: trying not to kiss back. His playfully bit her bottom lip and she gasped. Taking advantage of her open mouth he placed his lips on hers and pushed his tongue into her mouth. He danced circles around her tongue with his own causing her to moan softy. He removed his hand from her face and grabbed at the fingertips of one of her gloved hands: slipping it off. He then took her hand in his, caressing his skin with his fingers as he placed her hand in his hair.

He removed his lips from hers and slowly made his way down the side of her neck. He smirk against her skin as he kissed her neck softly: pleased that there was nothing blocking his access to her beautiful skin. She used to wear a black, spiked, collar around her neck, but after the incident in Charles office, a week ago, she slowly stopped putting it on. The metal on it must have reminded her of the collar he used to control her that night. _'Smart girl,'_ he thought as he slipped the glove off of her other hand. He heard her gaps as he bit her neck.

"E-Eric," she moaned. "...I... I- I should- shouldn't... do this" she gasped.

"We have had this conversation before, my girl," he uttered against her neck as he placed her other hand in his hair. "I usual get my way and you are rarely unsatisfied with the results," he said as he pushed her back against the her seat. He moved from his seat onto hers. There was nearly enough room. He actually had to open the passenger side door and put one of his feet on the dirt ground in order to keep from crushing her: he had his other leg kneeling on her seat, in between her legs. He broke contact with her neck and slipped his hand out from under her shirt as he released the button of the seat-belt. He took her hands in his and lowered them to her lap. They both watched the seat-belt move off her body.

"Eric, what are we doing?" she asked as her eyes made contact with his.

"You've asked that question already," he said.

"I know," she muttered, gasping as he pushed his knee up against her groin. "Stop that," she exclaimed as she pressed her hand against his knee: attempting to push it away from her.

"Do you honestly wish for me to stop?" he asked as he ran his hand down the side of her face. "Or are you acting upon some misguided notion of right and wrong?"

"Misguided? How?" she asked. He had not expected to be stuck in this position for more than a few moments, and already it hurt his body to maintain this awkward posture.

_'I should have waited until I had you back in our bedroom,'_ he thought as he shift his body slightly attempting to get more comfortable. Unfortunately, she misinterpreted the movement.

"Eric, I said no," she yelled as she pushed on his knee again. She managed to push his knee a few inches; which was all that was needed for him to lose his balance. He quickly caught himself and stepped out of the car before he fell onto her. He watched her swiftly moved out of the car: closing the door behind her.

"I was not attempting to force myself on you," he said as he regained his footing. She snorted as she crossed her arms over her chest. His eyes flashed with rage at her reaction. "Yes, I have manipulated you into sexual activities. But every time you have _explicitly_ said no I have _compiled_. I would _never _rape you," he screamed. The fact that he had to say it aloud angered him beyond belief. She knew him better than other person alive. She knew his character, everything about his past. He was capable of many horrendous things, but raping her was not one of them.

He watched as she cast her gaze away from his. "Search that memory of yours if you don't believe me," he said dryly.

"...Eric, I... I know you would never rape me," she said slowly. "Just-" she started to say before she stopped mid-sentence. He watched her facial expression changed rapidly; fear, sorrow, disbelief, amusement... a long sigh.

_'What is going on in that head of your, Anna?'_ he asked. "Yes," he asked curiously aloud as he took a step towards her.

"...You insult my morals calling them misguided. Why?," she asked as she looked up at him. "Because I won't have sex with you?" she asked with a short laugh. "Even through I want to," she said as she rolled her eyes, "... I think it would be stupid o- No... I _know_ it has been stupid of me. I should have stuck with you not being allowed to touch me. I should have never let you hold me that night. Ever since all you've done is try to get back into bed with you. And yeah... it's worked a couple of times... That's something I'm not proud of," she said softly glancing away from him.

_'And now?'_ he asked Rogue's future self as he watched her take a deep breath. He took her silence as a chance to get closer, advancing another step towards her.

"I know what you're trying to do to me. Your tactics," she said with disgust as she made eye contact. "You've stated them already. You want me to value our relationship more than any other relationship in my life. So, that I'd be willing to leave and be with you," she said. He watched her pause, taking a deep breath as she leaned back against the car. She crossed her arms over her chest as she looked up at him.

"My morals are misguided because I don't want you to succeed in that... But _you_," Rogue said in disgust. "You're willing to blackmail me: threaten my family: kidnap other members of my family. Not to mention kidnapping and holding me captive... I know what you've done in the past. You're okay with _murder_ as long as the ends justify the means... But rape, out of all the morals to follow, _that's_ the one and only thing you're truly against... _My_ morals are misguided?" she asked incredulously. "Please explain how my morals are _more_ fucked up than yours," she said.

"That is not what I said," he said as he took a step towards her. _'Of course you were correct,'_ he added in his mind as he took another step towards her. Her eyes widened for a moment.

"But it's what you implied," she said as she took a step forward, away from the car. "I'm against us having sex because my morals are misguided," she said again as she turned her body to the her right, and started to back away from him. "But you're the one _advocating_ for us to have sex. If your judgment of the situation is supposed to be _superior_ to mine than that means your morals are _less_ misguided. If that ain't the case then why the hell would we listen to yours _over_ mine," she finished yelling at him.

_'Because I am the captor and you are my _ mine_ to do with as I please,'_ he thought with a smirk as he walked towards her. He had a feeling she wouldn't approve of that thought. She took a step back away from him. He saw her eyes shift for a moment back and forth, glancing around her. _'No, my girl, there was no one around to aid you,'_ he thought.

"Anna, we could start an argument over our differing ideologies, or-"

"I thought I didn't _have_ an ideology yet," she said with attitude as she recrossed her arms over her chest. He couldn't help but chuckle.

"In terms of mutant, human relationships. But a individual's ideology is so much more than an opinion on one solitary issue. An ideology is the accumulation of every thought... every feeling a person has ever had, and every influence that has played a part in shaping the person that they are to become," he finished as he watched her eyes become distant.

"No wonder yours is so fucked up," she muttered as she stared at the ground. He had no idea what thought, or image she was viewing from his past, and he was quite sure that he did not want to know. For the first time this month he was grateful that he, himself, did not possess an eclectic memory. He could not imagine the burden of being able to view his past at his own digression. The torment she must undergoes every day...

"...Indeed," he agreed. He looked down at her with pity in his eyes.

"... Look, can we just go back to the mansion now?" she asked as she hugged herself. "Please?" she asked as her eyes made contact with his.

"Alright," he said as he walked up to her.

"I need to get my bag. It's in the car," she said. He nodded as he used his powers to open up the doors. She turned to look at the car, and took a step forward, but hesitated. "The zipper...It's made of metal," she said as she looked up at him with fear in her eyes. Searching with his powers he located the bag in question. "Could you just," she started to ask as he lifted the bag up and out of the car. She stopped asking her question as soon as she saw her backpack. "Thanks," she said as she grabbed it out of the air.

"Your welcome," he uttered as he watched her put on the backpack.

* * *

Twenty minutes later Magneto watched Rogue open the door to their bedroom. He followed in behind her, using his powers to close the door behind him. He watched her walk over to the bed and sit down. She glanced up at him as she reached down to take off her shoes.

"So, now wh-" Rogue's question was interrupted by the sound of Green sleeves. He used his powers to pull his cell phone out of his jacket pocket. He opened it up and placed it to his ear.

"Yes?" Magneto asked.

"Sir," Emma Frost said, "You asked to be informed about a half and hour before everything was in place," she said.

"I did," he agreed in a hushed voice. "And is it?" he asked as he watched Anna take off her boots.

"Yes, sir," she answered.

"Good," he said. "You know what to do," he ordered.

"Yes, sir," Emma replied before he lowered the phone: closed it and put it back in his pocket.

"What's going on?" Rogue asked. "What's in place?" she asked.

_'Of course you were able to hear her half way across the room,'_ he thought to himself slightly annoyed. "I have an errand to run," he said. "An errand that you interrupted with your car ride," he said. She opened her mouth to speak. "I understand that earlier it was not your intention to keep me from my obligations, but any questions you ask now will be. I can not afford to be late, not today. So, let's try this again. You will agree to stay in this room until it is time for dinner. You will go downstairs, you will eat dinner. Then you will excuse yourself after you have finished eating, saying you have much homework to do. You will come back to this room and you will not leave it for any reason. You will wait for me to return." he said.

_'Try to find a loop-hole to exploit from that, my girl,' _he thought as he walked up to the bed.

"Do you agree to my terms?" he asked as he looked down at her.

"Since I don't have a _choice," _she said as she looked up at him annoyed. He smirked. "Yeah, I agree to them," she said.

"Good," he said with a smile as he leaned down and kissed her. His hand went to her cheek and he tilted her head up, giving him a more comfortable angle for the kiss.

After a few seconds she pulled back slightly against his hand. He let her: breaking the kiss.

"You're gonna be late. I ain't letting you blame me for that," she said. He chuckled at her comment. "You should go," she said breathlessly as she stared into her eyes.

"Yes, I should," he said before he gave her one last peck on the lips. He stood up, slowly sliding his hand off of her face. With a sigh he backed away from her and out of the room. Magneto walked up to the elevator and waited for it to open.

He didn't have to wait long.

It opened immediately to reveal a young woman standing within. The young woman had long purple hair and blue eyes. She was wearing a pink tank top, and blue jeans. Elizabeth Braddock was another one of the telepaths he had working for him.

_'An intelligent young girl when she is not confronted with too many tasks at a time,' _he thought to himself.

"Magneto," she said with a slight nod in her soft British accent.

"Ms. Braddock, where are Ms. Gray and Mystique?" he asked.

"Jean just returned home from school. She is in her bedroom engaging in school work. Emma returned Mystique to Xavier's office some time ago," she reported.

"Have them both go to Cerbro. It's time," he said.

"Yes, sir," Elizabeth said as the elevator door started to close. He turned to go. "...Sir," she said quietly.

"Yes?" he asked he stopped the door from closing.

"I- I," Elizbeth started to say.

"Have there been any other incidences?" he asked annoyed as he stared down at the girl. He did not have time to listen to nonsense.

"No," she said quickly finding her voice again. "No, sir. Not since this morning. I just wanted to apologize for my clumsiness. Mystique should never had gotten to the school, or spoken to Rogue," she said daring to look up into his eyes.

"No, she should not have," he said darkly. He watched her drop his gaze. "Do not let it happen again," he order.

"Yes, sir. Of course not sir," she said quickly as he used his powers to close the elevator door.

_'...Children,'_ he thought to himself, _'they frighten so easily,' _he thought as he turned to walk back the way he had came. He looked at the door to Rogue's room longingly. _'If only I had waited until I had her back here,'_ he thought to himself irate._ 'She would be asleep, and I would be satisfied for the duration,' _he thought as he walked into the room across from Rogue's. He walked up to the wardrobe and opened it to see his uniform hanging up. '_Instead my girl will be contemplating my actions for the rest of the afternoon,' _he thought as he pulled his uniform off of the hanger._ '...It should make for an interesting conversation... Your speculation usually does, Anna,'_ he thought with a smirk as he moved to get dressed.

* * *

Six hours later Magneto returned to the institute satisfied with the days events. Everything was in place for tomorrow, and then for the day after that. In only two more days all of his plans would come to fruition.

_'That is when my work will truly begin,' _he thought to himself as he opened the door to his and Rogue's room slowly. He peered in to see her spread out on the bed: with a textbook open across her chest. He smiled. The girl had fallen asleep waiting for him to return. He sauntered into the room as quietly as he could, trying not to wake her. However, his attempts were in vain as he watched her eyes flutter open.

"Eric?" she muttered as she opened her eye more fully.

"Yes, my girl," he answered as he watched her sit up: pushing the textbook to the side. "Did you get any reading done?" he asked.

"Half the textbook," she said. "Ask me anything about world history before the year seventeen-hundred, and I'll probably know it," she said as she looked at him warningly: obviously noticing his change in attire.

"King Louis the fourteenth was?" he asked as he took off his helmet.

"King of France. He had the longest reign in European history: 1643 to 1715," she answered.

"Impressive," he said with a smirk as he walked further into the room.

"Not really, anyone can memorize facts... Something happened today," she said changing the subject. "... Something that everyone's gonna remember," she said slowly. "What was it?" she asked. He smirked as he looked down at her.

"I would love to answer your questions, Anna. I really would. But I've been in a sewer for over three hours," he informed her.

"A sewer?" she asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Yes, a sewer, and I smell as one would expect. If you will excuse me I'm going to go shower. I don't particularly wish to touch anything at the moment. Would you mind?" he asked as he used his powers to open the draw that had his clothes in it.

"Yeah, sure," she said as she got off of the bed and reached into the dresser.

_'And here I was under the impression that you would unwilling to help me,' _he thought with a smirk as he watched her walk across the room and into the bathroom with a pile of clothes.

"I put them on the sink," she said as she walked out of the bathroom.

"Thank you," he said.

"Your welcome," she said as she backed away from him. "Look, dinner wasn't really that fulling, and I've been stuck in here for the past three hours. Could I go downstairs and get something to eat?" she asked. He could help but chuckle.

_'So, that is why you helped. To exchange one favor for another. That's my girl,'_ he thought to himself. "I have not eaten anything all day," he informed her firmly as he walked towards the bathroom.

"Why didn't you eat anything today?" she asked as he turned to glance at her. A moment after she asked the question her eyes widened. "Oh," she said quietly as she sat down on the bed. "I'll wait," she said as picked the textbook back up.

"Yes, you will," he said as he walked into the bathroom.

* * *

Review time!!!!

MalfoysMudbloodPet: Aww!!! I will enable as much as I can! And thanks for voting!

Warrioroftheseventhestar: Yeah, the chapters were coming faster... before I went back to school. :Sighs: Anyway, thanks for voting! Sorry, your choice didn't win. Did you enjoy the chapter anyway?

Death-Is-Watching: Don't worry about the voting! Enough people did, but you confirmed that people were between two and three. Oh, and sorry about the updating. Stupid school work. Anyway, thanks for both reviews and I really look forward to reading anything else you might have to say!

LadyNorth76: ^.^ I hope you liked this chapter too! Please let me know?!?

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Peneneth: Thanks for voting! And you don't have to apologize. Reviewing is optional. Yes, I love it!But you please don't feel guilty! Oh, and thanks for all the detail about your choice! I hope you loved this chapter, and I hope to hear from you again(but it's still okay it you don't review ^.^) .

Crazyjess09: I got what you were saying, but I couldn't do it. Actually, that's not true. I did take your advice, after a fashion. After reading your suggestion I decided to push the events from the show along in this chapter. So, there is some progression in that sense. Thanks for the advice! I hope you loved this chapter and I hope to hear from you again!


	23. Chapter 22

For anyone who is interested, we are now in of the episode Day of Reckoning part 1.

Also, I have a special treat for you all after the reviews! I was going through some writers block as I started to write this chapter. So, I started to write the chapter in a different way to work out of it. I had fun! Please take a look at it if you would like to?!?

Oh, one more thing. There a lot of Magneto's past that I haven't gotten into. And most of it I'm not going to explain unless I really have to, or unless I'm asked to in a review. In case anyone is curious: please go read **X-Men Magneto Testament**. For this fic everything that happens to him in that origin story is assumed to be true, and makes up the foundation for the character I portray him as. So, anyone who would like to understand the events that make Magneto the man he is today, you need only go read that graphic novel. My apologizes if no one finds this comment useful or necessary.

Enjoy!

* * *

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Twenty-Two

Rogue sat on her bed, putting her shoes on as she watched Magneto put on his coat.

"Why do we have to go out to eat?" she asked as she glanced at her clock. "It's already eight-thirty. I have school tomorrow," she pointed out.

"I highly doubt that you will be attending," Eric said as he waited for her to get up. Panic crossed her expression.

"Why?" she asked quickly. "What happened? What did you do?" she asked.

"One question at a time, my girl," he said calmly as he walked over to her. He chuckled as he approached the bed. "Although, you might has well have asked the same question thrice," he said with a smirk on his face.

"What did you do?" she asked again as she stared up at him. He held out his hand to her. She stared at it for a moment before sighing.

"Anna?" he asked as he gestured to his hand. She took his hand, and he used his strength to pill her off of the bed.

"So?" she asked as pulled back against his hand, attempting to put a foot or two between them. His grip on her hand tightened, not enough to hurt her, but enough to keep her hand in his.

"I would like to wait until we are at the restaurant to converse on this topic," he informed her as he started to walk towards the door.

"Why?" she asked as she walked with him.

"I have my reasons," he said offhandedly as he continued to walk towards the door. His grip on her hand forcing her to walk with him. "Come," he said as used his powers to open the bedroom door. "The van is waiting outside," he said.

"Van?" she asked as they walked out into the hall. "Wait," she exclaimed as she ripped her hand out of his. "Is the van waiting for us outside the Institute's gates?" she asked as he turned to look at her.

"No, it is not," he answered.

"So, the gates are gonna open for us to leave?" she asked.

"Yes," he answered as he reached for her hand again. She pulled back. "Anna," he said breathlessly. "I have not eaten in almost a day. I am willing to discuss this with you, but can we please do so while _walking_?" he asked with a trace of annoyance in his voice. Now that she looked at him, he did look a little pale.

"Sorry," she muttered as she started to walk with him. "I know how you are about food. After everything you went through as a child and in the camps. I didn't mean to keep you from eating," she said expanding her apology.

"It's alright, Anna," he said as he rested his hand on the small of her back. He quickened his pace, and she moved with him. "That was _decades_ ago. I should be above such juvenile insecurities," he said as they speedily jogged down the stairs. "But, alas, I am not," he said as he used his powers to open the front door of the institute. The car in question was one of the institute's X-Van's, and it was waiting for them right outside. She watched him use his powers to open the front and passenger side doors. She felt his hand leave her back as he walked around to the other side of the door. She got into the car and closed her door.

It was just as she was about to put the seat-belt over her person that she rethought who she apologized to and why. She huffed as she let the seat-belt go, refusing to entrap herself further._ 'He _choose_ to hold you captive. You ain't keeping him from doing _shit_,' _she thought as she rolled her eyes at her own apology.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw him get into the car. She crossed her arms over her chest as a sign of defiance. She could feel his eyes on her, observing her posture.

"What could I _possible_ have missed in _thirty seconds_?" he asked baffled.

"You _chose_ to hold me captive," she said rewording her thought. "I'm not keeping you from anything. I don't have to apologize to you for jack-shit," she finished. Her eyes made contact with his for a moment: she saw pride behind his gaze. She turned to look out the front window.

"Nevertheless, the acknowledgment of my needs... even a temporary acknowledgment, was appreciated," he said as he started the car.

"I till acknowledge it," she muttered. "But I shouldn't _care_. So, I'm not going to," she uttered. Her eyes narrowed as she listened to him chuckle.

"If only you that were true, Anna," he said with a smile as he started to drive. "If only you were anger with me."

"I _am_ angry at you," she insisted strongly.

"_Now_, because of my reactions, yes you are. But before I had gotten into the van you were anger at yourself for apologizing. You still are," he added with a smirk. She refused to respond to that. They drove down the path in silence.

"A moment ago," Eric started to say as used his powers to open the front gates, "you were asking about the gate. Which side of it the van was on seemed to matter to you," he pointed out as he drove out of the institute, turning onto the road. "Why is that?" he asked attempting to change the subject. "Why would such a mundane detail matter?" he asked as he glanced at her through the rear-view window.

"Because it's not mundane," she muttered in irritation. "... A couple days ago we couldn't take a cab back here because you would still have to fly us _over _the gate. A couple of days ago, opening the gate mattered. But it doesn't now. Why is _that_?" she asked firmly.

"There could have been another reason as to why I desired to carry you back to the institute. Have you considered that?"

"So, what's the other reason?" she asked as she glanced over at him. He chuckled, but gave no verbal response. "Right, why would you actually_ answer_ a question?" she asked herself out loud: her aggravation paramount in her tone.

"You know that is not true," he said.

"Do I?" she asked.

"I've answered quite a few of your questions. In fact, by my count, _two_ in the last few minutes," he pointed out. She huffed in frustration, knowing he was right.

"It wasn't just Saturday," she said.

"What wasn't just Saturday?" he asked.

"You not being able- ...or not wanting to use the front gates. This afternoon bring Risty's car to the institute mattered. Because someone would notice that it didn't belong... But tonight, taking a van away won't effect anything. No one's gonna notice it's missing... Something's changed. Something big," she said.

"You've already said that," he said.

"I think you increased your security at the mansion," she said.

"You would be correct," he said with a smile. She turned to glance at him, waiting for him to say more. She sighed.

"_Why_ have you increased your security?"she asked.

"Because of what I did this afternoon," he answered.

"What did you do this afternoon?" she asked riled. As he chuckled again she was tempted to slap him, consequences be damned.

"Frustrating, isn't it?" he chivvied. "Knowing that some aspect of your life has changed drastically. And you having the ability to connect all my abstract clues together more sufficiency than any other... but still... still you need my input to discover what has transpired."

"It is frustrating," she mumbled. "So, you're waiting until we get to the restaurant to answer that question," she said.

"Yes, I am," he answered.

"Why?" she asked again.

"I hav-" he started to say.

"I swear to god, Eric, if you say I have my reasons again I am going to punch you. I don't care what the fuck you do to me because of that, but I will hit you," she said strongly as she looked at him. He glanced at her out of the corners of his eye. He raised an eyebrow at her expression.

"I was not aware my comments would enrage you this much," he said softly.

"I'm. Just. Angry," she said as she sat back against her seat. "I think I have the right to be angry."

"I know you do," he added. She opened her mouth to speak, but before she had to chance to say anything the radio turned on. "Pick whatever station you prefer," he told her, "and attempt to relax a little," he said.

"I relaxed a lot this afternoon, what good did it do me?" she asked.

"What _harm_ did it cause you?" he asked as he stared into her eyes through the rear-view mirror. She took a deep breath as she look at him. "None," he answered.

She really did hate it when he was right...

After a moment his eyes shifted back to the road in front of him. She let out a sigh as she leaned forward and played with the tuning nob. She stopped as she heard a rap song. It wasn't a song that she strongly liked or disliked, but she knew that he would detest it. And right now, the small amount of pain he would have to endure by listening to it was enough to pacify her rage.

She sat back against her and turned her head towards the passenger side window. Out of the corner of her eye she could see him winch at her choice in stations. She smirked slightly to herself as she stared out her window.

It wasn't much of a victory, but for tonight it would do...

* * *

So, that's it for this chapter. I know super short, and nothing really happened, but the restaurant scene is going to be really long. I haven't planed out the dialogue yet, but I know that a lot is going to happen. A lot is going to be revealed doing that scene. So, I want some time to work on that. And I have a lot of papers to write this week for school. Four of them, and a dance to go to! I don't want to have to worry about the fic for at least a week. So, you guys get a shot chapter. I hope you enjoyed it and please review!?! Pretty pretty please with Mutant Supremacy on top!?!

* * *

MalfoysMudbloodPet: I feel the same. I love this parring so much! Personally, I don't think I'll get tired of the ship or Max calling Anna, my girl. ^.^ Something inside me just sings out in joy whenever I imagine that possessive look he gives her. That's perfectly normal, right? :p Anyway, I glad you liked the chapter! And, I'm especially glad that I made you the happy dance! What was it like seven times in this chapter, I had him call her his girl? Yup, just recounted! It was seven! Personally, I'm just a really big fan of inspiring dance of any kind! Okay, I'll rambled on long enough... Thank you for the review! It was a pleasure to read, and made me do a happy dance of my own ^.^ I hope to hear from you again!

LadyNorth76: Thanks! I glad that you liked Eric's point of view. If you don't mind me asking, you wrote that it was starting to drag on, what about the fic do you feel is dragging on? You don't have to answer, obviously. I'm just curious. ^.^ Thanks! I hope to hear from you again!

Warrioroftheseventhstar: Thank you for all the complements! You know your doing a good job when someone says that "You are such a good author" ^.^ I really appreciate a complement like that. Thank you for writing it!

Peneneth: I love the imagery your review has! I will never be able to listen to the godfather theme song without getting a picture of Magneto, stroking his bucket, in my head now :) Thanks for that! And, yeah he kind of is the mutant godfather. He'll make you an offer you can't refuse... unless your Rogue. Then you can say no to him like twenty times a day, and he'll just have to deal with it. ^.^ Anyway, thanks for the review! I love it! I read it like five times already! I really hope you liked this chapter and I hope to hear from you again.

Death-Is-Watching: I glad you liked it! Yes, another reader is addicted to my fan-fic! :Evil laugh: … Sorry, I'm having way too much responding to reviews this chapter! I really glad you enjoying the story! I love hearing that! Thank you for writing it! Sorry, that you have to wait another chapter for Magneto's plan to be revealed, but I figured a shot chapter is better than no chapter.

* * *

As, promised, I had some fun with the first draft as I decided what was going to happen and why.

Please enjoy.

"What did you do?" she asked again as she stared up at him. He held out his hand to her. She stared at it for a moment before sighing.

"Anna?" he asked as he gestured to his hand. She took his hand, and he used his strength to pill her off of the bed.

"So?" Rogue asked as pulled back against his hand, attempting to put a foot or two between them. His grip on her hand tightened, not enough to hurt her, but enough to keep her hand in his.

"I would like to wait until we are at the restaurant to converse on this topic," he informed her as he started to walk towards the door.

"Why?" she asked.

"Plot device, my girl," he said offhandedly. "You see, the author does not want to us to have this conversation in this room, because she knows as well as I that any conversation although started in the up right position will, no doubt, end on that lovely contraption behind you," he said with a smile.

"The bed?" she asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Indeed," he said with a smirk.

"So, leaving the room forces you to what? Behave yourself?" she asked before laughing. "We both know that ain't true.

"Of course not," he agreed with a dark chuckle. "But being in a_ public_ place forces me to keep my hands and... _other_ parts of my person to myself...," he said. "...Probably," he added after a twenty second pause.

"Probably?" she repeated.

"There are a few activities I believe we could engage in public that would go unnoticed."

"Do I wanna know?" she asked.

"Perhaps...I _would_ be more than happy to show you," he said as he took another step towards her, staring down at her with lust in his eyes.

"Jesus, Eric! Could you keep it in your pants for more than _one chapter_?" she asked incredulously as she ripped her hand of of his. She took a step away from him.

"I resent that comment," he said as he took a step towards her.

"I _resent_ a lotta things," she countered.

"I have only had _it_ out for exactly one chapter," he continued ignoring her statement. "That is all. One," he said strongly. "No more, no less."

"Only because I usually say no before you get a change," she yelled. "That doesn't stop you from trying. You and I would be naked _every_ chapter if you had your way," she pointed out.

"Which is precisely the reason why we should not have this conversation here," he said as he walked over to the door. "Now," he said as he opened the door, "if we can leave?" he asked as he glanced over at her. "I am extremely hungry and I promise you, my girl, that I _will _be eating _something_ this night," he said as his eye roamed over her body. "The venue and the meal, in it of itself, is yours to choice. But I warn you I am growing _impatient_ and furthermore-" he continued to rant as Rogue ran past him out the door. "...that certainly took you long enough," he added softly with a smirk as he closed the door to the bedroom behind him.


	24. Chapter 23

Sorry for the long wait! I had a lot of homework (freakin textbook!), and this was a really long chapter. There's a lot of stuff going on in the background that Rogue isn't aware of. With this chapter I finally had to map out exactly what all that stuff was, (aka, who does Magneto have doing what in Bayville and why). All the research into the new characters. Making everything fit nicely into Magneto's larger strategy took me a week alone! (Did I mention that I over-think everything :p)

Usually, when writing a fan fiction the visual settings and the people are know to the readers before I even write a single word. But every so often I have to write out a scene in a completely new environment. During these times I try to keep the details to the minimum. Only the most useful details that will help form a picture in the reader's mind.

Also, when it comes to introducing new characters I try to do so one at a time (in an already used location) as to avoid, having to write too much description and, confusion. But not this chapter! This chapter will have a few new people, and a whole new setting. As well as complicated seating arrangements!

(So, to make everyone's life easier ^.^) While I writing the chapter, I wrote out a seating chart to help me keep track of the characters, and I decided to post this seating chart here now, so you guys will be able to follow along better. You all already know that this is a restaurant scene so I hope I'm not spoiling too much by posting this in the beginning of the chapter.

There are four tables, each table seats three people. Notes; TB= table; ES= Empty Seat; ____= Empty space (AKA, the only thing that would let me format the room the way I needed to); Front Entrance = The doors Rogue and Magento enter though.

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2BATH_ROOMS___________________________________ DOOR________2

____________________________________________________________W

____________________________________________________________I

________(TB1) Rogue_____ Magneto____ Pietro Maximoff______________N

________(T) Blindspot________________ Wanda Maximoff (T)____________

________(B)Emma Frost______________ Joanna Cargill___(B)___________D

________(2) Graydon Creed___________ Remy LeBeau___(4)___________O

________(TB3) Xi'an Coy Manh____ ES___ES_________________________W

_____________________________________________________________S

______________________THE FRONT ENTRANCE________________________

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(As per-usual the new characters are from the larger Marvel universe if you want to get a better picture of what they look like, please fell free to google them!?!)

Speaking of which there is a little info on the two new characters.** If you don't want to know yet then please do not read the next two short paragraphs.**

Joanna Cargill: a young black woman in her early twenties. She has brown eyes, black hair done in cornrows, and she's wearing a black top tank, and pants. Powers: super-strength.

Xi'an (Shan) Coy Manh: Asian woman in her early thirties: she had short black hair. She's wearing an over-sized gray sweater, and a blue pants. Xi'an is pronounced "Shan." Even in the comics the writers call her Shan, so that I refer to her as in the story when I need to. Powers: Mind-possession.

Also, (since the show does it!) once I describe a person wearing a certain outfit assume that, that is how they are dressed unless I write a new description for their wardrobe.

One more thing: I got a lot of good feedback from the chapter from Magneto's point of view. So, with this chapter I'm going to experiment with other people's point of view. So, you find out about some stuff going on that Rogue may not be present for. Please let me know what you think about this in reviews!?! If it works, if it doesn't. If you like it, if you don't. I would like opinions! Thank you!

Wow, that's a lot of notes! My apologizes, for my long winded explanations and excuses. Okay, I'm done now.

Please enjoy!

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Taunting Repartee

Chapter Twenty-Three

Rogue sighed as Eric turned off the radio and parked the car in the Crescent Beach Club's parking lot. The ride had taken over forty minutes, and they had passed several other restaurants on the way to this one. _'So, it only matters when _I_ cause the delay,'_ she thought frustrated.

Once the car had come to a stop she opened her door, got out of the car and slammed it closed behind her. She walked out from behind the car. The chill in the night air caused her to hug herself as she gazed, pass the parking lot, out into the ocean.

The moon along on the beach's water was breathtaking... oddly calming.

"Beautiful view, isn't it?" Eric asked as he walked up next to her.

"Yeah," she mumbled.

"It was one of the deciding factors when I chose Bayville as our setting," he said softly as his hand went onto the small of her back. "That and the sea food," he added.

At his comment she glanced up at him. He had a peaceful smile on his face.

"There was this one tavern in Westchester I went to frequently, while I was considering that part of New York. They serve an_ excellent _shrimp cocktail... But no eatery I've ever been to _compares_ to the lobster served right here," he said with a smile. "I've been to this restaurant-" he paused for a moment as he let out a soft laugh. "Honestly, I've lost count as to how many times I've eaten here. But every time I have... I have never _once_ regretted a meal," he said.

By the soft tone of his voice she could tell this was something he had never told anyone else before. If it wasn't for the circumstances that forced her by his side she might have been able to appreciate the intimacy of the conversation. Instead she focused on the implications of his words.

"I don't have memories of you eating here or of you in Westchester," she said quietly. "I don't have _any_ memories of you choosing a location," she said.

"I know," he said as he glanced down at her. "But you _do_ have memories of me using my telepathic abilities."

"...You don't have telepathic abilities," she said.

"You seem so certain," he commented with a smirk.

"Tell me I'm wrong," she said aggravated. He chuckled.

"No, I cannot read minds," he confirmed with a smile. "But I do have_ telepaths_. Quite a few of them," he said. She sucked in a breath.

"The memories I had access to from your mind... they were _altered_," she said suddenly very cold.

"Yes, they were," he said as his hand slid up her back onto her shoulder. "But you've suspected that for some time now, haven't you?" he asked as he turned his body to face her.

"Kind of," she said: stepping closer to him, allowing herself to take warmth in his hold. His other hand came up onto her arm.

"We forgot your coat," he said amused as he rubbed her arms: warming her skin.

"So, can we go inside now?" she asked, attempted to hide the annoyance from her voice. "I'm freezing," she said.

"I'm waiting for a phon-" he started to say as the tune green sleeves sounded from his coat pocket. "It's in my coat's the left pocket," he said. Her eyes widened for a moment.

"You want me to-" she started to ask.

"Yes," he said. "My hands are occupied at the moment," he said.

"Because you definitely need your hands to answer the _metal_ phone," she said annoyed as she loosed her hands around her body. He chuckled as she reached behind his coat, and found his pocket. She grabbed the phone out of pocket and lifted it out. She lifted it towards his face as the phone flipped opened.

"Answer it," he commanded as he continued to rub her arms.

Confused: she lifted it up to her ear and said, "Hello?"

"Rogue?" Graydon asked surprised.

"It's alright, Graydon," Rogue heard Emma say in the background. "You can tell her."

"Tell Magneto that the room is ready, and that everyone expected is present," Graydon told her as she looked up at Magneto. He nodded to her.

"He heard," Rogue said. Magneto used his powers to shut the phone. She moved her hand closer to his body again.

"Keep it," he told her.

"What?" she asked completely taken aback by his statement. "Why?" she asked.

"Because I said so," he said before he leaned forward and kissed her forehead. He pulled back as his hand slipped around her shoulder. He started to walk towards the restaurant; his hold over her shoulder forced her to walk with him. Her hand tightened around the cell phone as her eyes narrowed.

* * *

Magneto escorted Rogue through the elegant restaurant. He lowered his arm from her shoulder before he took off his coat. He turned to the coat-rack to his left and hung his coat up.

"Anna," he said calling for her attention. She turned to look at him. "Once we go inside, I need you to appear as though you belong," he said.

"Don't act like a prisoner. Got it," she said irate.

"More than that," he said as his hands came up to her shoulders again. "Act as they do, as though you are _devoted_ to me," he said. Her eyes narrowed. "Can you manage? Or will you force me to entrap you in the _'large metal cage'_ we arrived in?"

"I'll be fine," she said clenched teeth.

"Good," he said with a smirk. "Lift up your arms," he commanded.

"What?" she asked again.

"Now, Anna," he said sternly as he removed his hands from her arms. With a sigh she did as he asked. He lifted her green sheer shirt up and over her head. He turned towards the coat-rack again and pulled at a black jacket. He handed it to her. She took the hint and put on the jacket as he hung up her shirt. Unsurprisingly, it fix perfectly. She slipped the cell phone into the jacket's pocket, as Eric fixed her collar. "One simple wardrobe change and you look significantly more like my assistant than a high school student," he said with a smile.

"If they're all so devoted to you then why do we have to pretend you ain't holding my captive?" she asked. He chuckled.

"I do not _need_ to do anything of the sort. You wish to learn what has changed?"

"I've only asked three times," she said annoyed. He nodded.

"And I enjoy testing the limits of your capability. With this pretense we both establish the means for our desires. Now, no more delays. Hold the door open, and close it behind me," he said as he turned towards the door. She let herself sigh one more time before she walked up to the door.

_'You're only doing this to learn what's going on, girl. If you wanna stop, just leave the room,' _she thought to herself. She allowed herself to sigh one more time, before she opened the door.

Rogue glanced around the room as she held the door open for Eric. There were four square tables linked together forming a larger square. As Magneto entered the room everyone stood up: a sign of respect. Rogue kept herself her rolling her eyes as she closed the door. She turned around and surveyed the room.

There were nine other people in the room besides her and Magneto: most she recognized. Her brother, Graydon and Emma Frost were there. Both of Magneto's children, Pietro and Wanda, and the telepath Blindspot was present as well.

There were four people she didn't recognize. Standing next to Wanda, was a young black woman: she had brown eyes, black hair done in cornrows, and she was wearing a black top tank, and pants, not unlike the ones Rogue was wearing. Standing next to her was a white man in early twenties: he had brown hair. His most distinctive feature were his eyes: they were crimson red.

Standing at the table parallel to the door were two more women Rogue didn't know. The woman sitting adjacent to her brother was an Asian woman in her early thirties: she had short black hair. She was wearing an over-sized gray sweater, and a blue pants.

"Good evening, everyone," Magneto said as he walked to his left, around the tables.

"Sir," said everyone in the room simultaneously. Rogue moved towards the table but hesitated. There were four empty seats at the table. The one at the head of the table was obviously for Magneto. But she was unsure which of the other three she should sit in. She watched as Magneto stopped behind his children.

Wanda turned around to face her father with a hug. "It's good to see you father," Wanda said as Magneto kissed her cheek. Magneto's eye caught Rogue's and moved to look at the chair next to his. Rogue gave a quick nod as she started to walk along the right side of the room.

"It's a pleasure to see you too, Wanda," Magneto said with a smile as he pulled away from her. "How is Lorna?" he asked.

"Disappointed she's not here, sir," Wanda said as Rogue got to her seat. Everyone else was still standing, so Rogue stood behind her chair.

"Perhaps next time," Magneto said with a smile before he turned to his son. "Pietro," he said with a smile as he held out his hand.

"Father," he said glancing up at Magneto: taking his hand and shaking.

"How are events transpiring?"

"Perfectly, sir," he said as Magneto released his hand. "Everything's happening just the way you said," he said.

"Good work," Magneto said before he turned away from his son.

"Thank you, sir," Pietro said as Magneto took his seat.

"Be seated," Magneto ordered. Everyone complied. Rogue took a moment longer than everyone else to sit since she had to pull out her chair. "Personally, I am famished," he said as he picked up the menu in front of him. Rogue watched as everyone else in the room sat waiting in silence: none of them had menus.

'_I ain't even hungry anymore,'_ Rogue thought to herself as she stared down at the menu in front of her. Her eyes widened for a moment as the menu moved an inch towards her. She quickly reached out and picked up the menu. She opened it up and glanced over her choices. _'Okay, I _have_ to order something…' _she thought as she felt eyes on her. _'I wish everyone would stop staring at me,_' she thought frustrated.

'_What do you want, Rogue?'_ she heard Emma's voice in her mind.

'_I…I haven't decided yet,'_ she thought startled as she glanced over at her.

"Emma," Magneto said.

"Yes, sir?" Emma asked.

"I'll have my usual meal," Magneto said. "Rogue?" he asked as picked up the glass of ice water on the table in front of him.

There were a lot of choices… "You usually have good taste," she started to say as she closed the menu, "I'll have whatever you're having," she said as she glanced up at him, "…sir," she added attempting to play her part. However, the word sounded forced, unnatural to her ear. Magneto put the glass to his lips. From her seat Rogue could see that he was smirking against the glass.

"Sir, if you will excuse me: I'll give our orders to the staff?" Emma asked. Magneto nodded as he handed his menu to Rogue. Emma stood up and walked towards Rogue for a moment. She handed Emma both of the menus: who quickly turned around, walked towards the door, and exited.

"It seems as though we have some time before our food arrives," Magneto started to say as he placed the glass back on the table. "Rogue, with me. Everyone else, converse, enjoy the night," he said before he stood up.

'_Well, that was fast,_' Rogue thought frustrated as she got on her feet. She hid her surprise as she followed Magneto over to the far left corner of the room, and not out the exit they had came from. Behind her she heard whispered as people began to speak to one another. She watched as Magneto opened the door and sauntered through. She held back a sigh as she walked through as well.

The room they entered was much smaller than the one they had just entered from. It had a desk, chairs and a small couch against the wall. She glanced at the desk and gasped at the name plate: it read Eric Lensherr.

"You own the building, or something?" she asked.

"Yes, I do," he said with a low chuckle. "You're surprised?" he asked as he sat on the couch.

"I guess I shouldn't be," she mumbled. "… So, I ain't going back to the car then?" she asked.

"No, of course not," he said with a laugh. "You haven't done anything to warrant that punishment," he said as he gestured for her to sit on the couch. Her eyes widened.

"There's barley room on that for _one_ person," she said. She would have to sit on his lap. _'God, how many times have I done that already?'_ she asked herself. A few images of her sitting on top of him popped into her mind: the heated feelings associated with the memories along with them. She quickly pushed them away. She took a deep breath as she glanced down at him again.

"We'll manage," he said with a smirk as he had out his hand to her. Rogue instead took a seat in one of the chairs facing his desk. Her heart began to race as the chair turned. She grabbed on the sides of the seat as it moved across the room until she right in front of him. He reached out and brushed his hand down her cheek: her face flushed. She slowly unclenched hers hands from the sides of the chair.

"Must you always be difficult?" he asked as he stared into her eyes. She took a few breaths: attempting, in vain, to claim herself.

"If you- if you wanted this to be easy… you would've just had one of your telepaths make me say yes," she pointed out. He chuckled as he pulled her face closer to his.

"I still may do so, anytime I wish," he uttered as his free hand went onto her waist. She shuttered at the thought.

"I don't think you will," she whispered shaking her head slightly as she placed one of her hands on her knees.

"I know I won't," he said before he closed the distance between their lips.

* * *

Graydon sat staring at the door to Magneto's office in fear: as he had been for the last few minutes.

'_What is she doing here?'_ he asked himself again_. 'Emma,'_ he called out.

No response… again. He hated when Emma shut him out like this. It was happening a lot lately: especially whenever he tried to talk to her about his sister.

'_She's a prisoner. I know that much. But now she's here with him. I don't understand why he keeps bring her along. The way she's acting… like she's one of us… on our side. I-'_

"Graydon," Blindspot said. Graydon turned to look at her for a moment. "Well, Rogue's ranks certainly gone up in the last two weeks," she said as she looked at the door.

'_More like the last two days,'_ he thought to himself as he looked to the door again.

"What do you think they're doing in there?" Blindspot asked.

"I have no idea," he said gravely. Graydon turned his attention to the front entrance as Emma reentered the room_. 'Emma,_' he thought. Emma met his gaze, a sure sign she was listening to his thoughts. _'What is Rogue doing here?' _he asked.

'_Graydon, I can't answer that,_' Emma projected into his mind as she came and sat down next to him.

'_Why not?'_ he asked. "Emma, please stop shutting me out," he said. Emma sighed.

'_He's attempting to sway her to our side,'_ Emma thought.

'_Still? Hasn't he been doing that for the last few weeks? That's why we were there that week end. How many times does he have to talk to her?'_ he asked. Emma didn't respond. _'If she keeps saying no, then why is he still trying?' _

'_I don't know, Graydon. It's not my place to question… It's definitely not yours,'_ she thought.

'_Because I'm human,'_ he thought angered.

"That's not what I meant," she said out loud as she put her hand on top of his.

"That's_ exactly_ what you meant, Emma," he said annoyed as he pulled his hand away.

'_You know _I_ don't care about that… I love you,'_ she thought as stared into his eyes.

'…_I love you too, Em,'_ he thought before she leaned in a kissed him. He pulled back as he glanced at the office's door again._ 'I'm worried about her,' _he thought. _'I have to do something,'_ he thought as he moved to get up.

'_Graydon, please,'_ she thought into his mind as she grabbed onto his arm: stopping him from getting up. _'Both of us cannot question Magneto. Equally, both of us can not.'_

'_But Rogue can?'_ he asked confused. _'I saw the way she talked to him in the dinner. It was- he let her talk back to him and question him… Curse at him? She called him an_ asshole_ to his face and he laughed Emma. He _laughed_…'_ he thought in disbelief. _' If any of us called him that you know what he would do. There would be a punishment…' _he thought. He watched Emma wince. He himself shuttered at the thought. '_And what the hell was going on about a fragment, and psychological _torture_?'_ he asked. _'…There is something wrong with the way he treats her. I don't know what it is, but it scares me, Em… She's my baby sister. I'm supposed to _protect_ her.' _

'_You can't protect her, not from Magneto,'_ Emma thought. '_Try to and you might get yourself _killed_,'_ she thought. _'The thought of anything happening to you- _she stopped to take a deep breath._ 'Rogue's in-… Rogue will _live_ through whatever Magneto does to her. But if you try and stop him… you won't.'_

'_I'm an acceptable loss,'_ he thought bitterly.

'_We're _all_ acceptable losses. Magneto's the exception… and Rogue for some reason,'_

'_But _why_?' _he asked.

'_I don't know, Graydon,'_ she thought. He gave her a look of disbelief. _'Really, I don't know. He's knows what our relationship is. He's the one who introduced us, remember? All those years ago, our first year of college,'_ she thought with a smile. He couldn't help himself, he return the smile. She sighed. _'He's tries to keep whatever he's doing to her from me. We were only there that day because I'm the best telepath he had in Bayville. I was the only one capable of doing what he needed to be done. Can you imagine _Besty_ flittering through all the x-men's thoughts at once?'_ she asked with a laugh.

'_She's young. She's get better. You've taught her a lot already,'_ he thought.

'_I know I have,'_ she thought.

'_Do you know _anything_ about what he's doing to her?'_ he asked. She didn't respond. The worried expression on her face only intensified. "Emma, please," he said aloud as he placed his hand over her. "She's my little sister," he whispered.

'_That's why I don't want to tell you. It will only upset you and there is_ nothing_ you can do,'_ she thought. _'Can we _please_ talk about something else,'_ she begged him. He glanced at the door again.

'…_can we- … Is there any way we can get them out there? I don't think I'd be as worried if I could see her,' _he thought.

'_He does not want to be disturbed until the food is prepared. We can't do anything until then... I'm sorry,'_ she thought.

'_Emma... am I right to be worried?'_ he asked as he gazed up at her. The look on her face was all he needed to know that he was correct in his worriment.

'_Please do not ask me again. I hate keeping things from you... He cares about her,' _Emma thought suddenly. _'I know that much.' _

'_What?'_ Graydon asked completely taken back.

'_You don't have to worry so much, Graydon. Magneto's taken a likening to her. Rogue will be alright,' _she thought.

'_What kind of _likening_?'_ he asked with an eyebrow rose. _'Like father, daughter? He barely spends time with his _real_ children, why would he spend so much time with Rogue?'_ he asked as he watched her expression.

'_Graydon, look, I was just trying to put your mind at ease, not give you more questions. Forget I said anything,'_ she thought.

"What kind of likening?" he whispered aloud as he thought about the Rogue and Magneto's interaction at the dinner. There was something off about it, but he couldn't put his figure on it. _'Something private… intimate…'_ Graydon's eyes widened as a thought came to mind_. 'No… no, no, no: definitely not. Magneto is definitely not _sexually_ interested in my seventeen year old baby sister,_' he thought to himself. However, he looked up at Emma as he thought it, and her facial expression changed dramatically. "Right?" he asked her.

Emma's eyes widened as tears began to form.

"I don't want to lie to you, Graydon," she said.

"So, just don't. Tell me the truth," he said. This idea was becoming more real every sentence she didn't deny it. The thoughts that were running throuh his head. He sucked in a breath. "Is that why he wants to be _alone_ with her, so he can-"

"Graydon, please," she started to say.

'_Is Magneto sexually assaulting my little sister?'_ he asked. "Emma, just answer the question," he said. "Yes, or no?" he asked.

"…Yes," she admitted. Angry filled Graydon as he got to his feet. "Graydon, don't," Emma exclaimed. He started to race towards the door to Magneto's office when he felt something strange in his mind.

'_I can't move,'_ he thought consumed with fear. _'Emma,'_ he called out before he felt his consciousness drift away.

* * *

Emma Frost watched as Shan Coy Manh, stood up. "Shan release your hold over him," she commanded.

"He was going to attack Magneto," she claimed in her soft French accent.

"Who was going to attack Father?" Wanda said as she stood up as well: her hands glowed red. Pietro ran over from the other side of the room to his sister's side.

"With what _army_?" Emma asked annoyed. "He was going to knock on the door, that's all," she yelled as the others walked over to the conflict.

"Wait, Graydon?" Pietro asked with a laugh. "There's no way,_ Graydon_ was going to attack Magneto. He's not an idiot," he said.

"Nevertheless we have a problem," Shan said.

"A problem _I_ will deal with," Emma said strongly.

"You had your chance," Shan said. "You should have erased the problematic memory from his mind before it escalated to this point. If you will not do what must be done then I will ask someone who will. Blindspot?" she asked.

"Blindspot, don't you dare take _any_ of his memory," Emma yelled as she moved to block Blindspot's path to Graydon.

"Emma, if I was gonna do it, you wouldn't be able to stop me," Blindspot said. Emma's eyes narrowed. "But… Shan, is it?" she asked, but continued to speak before waiting for an answer. "I don't take orders from you: or anyone else in this room. Only Magneto…So," she said with a smile. "Let's go ask him," she said before she playfully sauntered towards his office's door.

* * *

I'm breaking up this night into two chapters. It's already over 4000 words, so I feel good about the length. I hope everyone enjoyed it. If not, please tell me why. Like I wrote earlier: this chapter was a bit of an experiment. I want to know if it worked or not.

Once again, I'm sorry I took so long to update. I was only able to get this chapter written because I worked out a way to make it homework for my states of consciousness class. (BEST HOMEWORK ASSIGNMENT EVER!) I don't know when the next chapter will be up, but I'm working on it: just slowly.

Okay reviews!

LadyNorth76: Thanks! Sorry, I took so long getting the next chapter up! I hope you like the addition the plot points and other people's points of view. Please let me know? Thanks for reading and reviewing!

MalfoysMudbloodPet: I glad you like it! I love the nickname, by the way (Lady Authoress). Makes me smile every time I read it! I agree, but I think Eric will just have to deal with his… hm…ball problem. ^.^ I hope you like this chapter! Please let me know?

Warrioroftheseventhstar: Thanks! I'm glad I made you laugh. I hope you liked this chapter!

Peneneth: Yeah, that's cause it was a teaser. Then I got all busy with school work and month goes by without much work being done on it. Sorry! I glad you're enjoying the details. Also, I'm very happy that I made your day with the last part. Thank you for the review and I hope to hear from you again?!?

Ankle: Thank you so much! I hope you continue to love it! Thank you for the lovely review and I really hope to hear from you again?!?


	25. Chapter 24

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Twenty-Four

Rogue moaned softly as Eric bite her neck. Her arms were wrapped around his neck as she straddled his lap. She took deep breaths: as usual they did very little to help her escape the aroused state Eric enjoyed trapping her in.

"How the hell am I supposed to… figure out what's going on in Bayville by sitting on your lap?" she managed to ask aloud as he continued to run his hands up and down her now shirt-less back. He responded with a deep laugh.

"I assure you, my girl, we will get to that," he said as he pulled back slightly to meet her gaze. "You will simply have to be patient," he said as he moved his hand to gently brush away some hair off of her face.

He leaned in to kiss her again as there was a knock at the door. Rogue turned her head away from Eric's as she gazed at the door. She moved to get off of his lap but he tightened his hold on her waist keeping her getting up. She turned back to glare at him.

"It is far too soon for the food," he explained as he ran his hand down her bare shoulder and across the straps of her bra: causing her to shiver. "Yes?" he called out loudly.

"Sir, I apologize for bothering you, but we have a situation that requires your guidance," she heard Blindspot say. She watched Eric raise an eyebrow.

"In a moment," Eric declared as he removed his hand from her waist. He gave a quick nod to Rogue: she understood to stand up.

'_Where the hell is my shirt?_' she asked herself as she surveyed the room. She saw some black material on the floor near Eric's desk and walked over to it. She reached down and pick up the shirt_. 'Or what's left of it,'_ she thought frustrated as she noticed it was ripped_. 'I can't wear this,'_ she thought annoyed. "What is your obsession with ruining my clothes?" she asked him as she turned to see him standing near the door. He chuckled as he walked towards the couch. He reached down and picked up the black jacket.

"This should be sufficient," he said as he handed her the jacket, while his eyes glanced over her body. She snatched it out of his hand as she continued to glare at him. He took a step towards her as she put on the jacket as quickly as she could. He reached out and grabbed at the jacket: buttoning the bottom button. She slapped his hand away.

"I can do that myself," she muttered as she buttoned the next button.

"Of course you can," he said with a chuckle as he used his abilities to shake the metal buttons: causing her to lose her grip on the button. His hand swiftly took hold of the jacket again. This time she didn't bother to fight him as he did up the last of the buttons. She inhaled sharply as his fingers slid across her neck, and under her chin. He titled her head up to face him. "I promise you, my girl, we will finish this," he said before he leaned in and gave her a quick peck on the lips, "sometime tonight."

"I'd be okay with you breaking that promise," she whispered.

"Nevertheless, I am a man of my word," he said with a chuckle. "Let's see what trouble my _minions_ have gotten into, shall we?" he asked with a smile as he backed away from her. She watched him turn towards the door as she started to smooth out the jacket. "Your appearance is fine, Anna. I would not be allowing you to leave the room if I thought otherwise," he said as he got to the door. She huffed as she stopping touching the jacket, and followed him out of the room. Her eyes immediately went to her brother. He was standing motionless a few feet from Magneto's office

"Graydon?" Rogue asked confused as she walked up to her brother. "Why's he like this?" she asked somewhat panicked as she examined her brother's frozen posture.

"Emma, take Rogue outside," Magneto commanded.

"But-" Rogue started to say as she turned to face Magneto.

"Now," Magneto said sternly as their gaze met: his cold eyes bored into Rogue's.

_'There's that look again,'_ Rogue thought with a fear filled shutter as she felt Emma's hand on her arm.

"Let's go, Rogue," Emma said quietly. _'Neither of us can help him here. Defying Magneto will only make the situation worse for Graydon,'_ Emma projected into Rogue's mind. Rogue nodded to both of them as she let Emma usher her towards the exit.

'_Emma, what's going on?' _Rogue asked as she turned back to look at her brother.

'_Outside,'_ Emma thought firmly as she tightened her hold on Rogue's arm. Rogue watched Magneto walk up to her brother, his hands clasped behind his back, as Emma pulled Rogue out of the room.

'_Is Gray gonna be okay?'_ Rogue asked as they walked thought the restaurant.

'_I don't know,'_ Emma admitted. Rogue gasped as a few tears ran down her face.

* * *

"Ms. Manh bring Graydon into my office," Magneto commanded. "Blindspot, I wish to know to know what was said," he said.

"I'm sorry, sir. I'm not that type of telepath," Blindspot said.

"Cell phone," Magneto commanded. Blindspot quickly got hers out of her pocket. Magneto opened it wordlessly and dialed a number. "… Ms. Braddock, I'd like to give you the opportunity to redeem yourself in my eyes," he said.

* * *

'_What happened?'_ Rogue asked once they were outside the restaurant. "Emma, please he's my brother," she said as Emma released her arm. Rogue watched her roll her eyes.

"And he's my _boyfriend_," Emma yelled, "and believe me I am just as worried as you are. But you don't understand," she yelled as tears ran down her face. "I _work _for Magneto, and he has made it very clear that he's the only one who is allowed to give you information. It is not my _place_ to tell you anything," Emma yelled in anguish.

"I'm sorry," Rogue muttered as she hugged herself: the cold was starting to get to her. Rogue's eye widened slightly. "He's not in trouble because of what he told me at that diner, right? I thought I covered that up well enough," she said quickly.

"You- … you did. That's not why," Emma said. Rogue let out a sigh as she shuttered from the cold. "I can't tell you why," she said again.

"I understand," Rogue said as she ran her hands up and down her arms.

"Are you cold?" Emma asked.

"Yeah," she answered. "The jacket's kinda thin," Rogue said as she and Emma began to walk to her silver car

"The shirt underneath as well, I take it," she commented.

"What shirt? Eric ripped mine," she said annoyed.

"How- how did that happen…exactly," Emma asked as she took a deep breath as she opened the driver's seat door.

"I'm not sure actually," Rogue said as she opened the passenger side door to the car. "My eyes were closed when it happened," she explained as she and Emma sat down on the seats. "One minute I was sitting on the chair in front of him and next thing I know I'm on his lap shirtless," she said with a sigh.

"…How many times has," Emma started to say as she started the car "… has Magneto attempted to seduce you?" she asked.

"What today?" Rogue asked as she looked up at Emma. Rogue watched her take a deep breath and wipe a few tears off her face. _'Are those tears for me?'_ Rogue asked herself confused.

"Yes," Emma said. Rogue wasn't sure which of her questions she was answering. "…how- how many times today?" Emma asked.

"Hmm…" Rogue paused as she thought about it for a moment. '_There was in the car the first time, and the second time? Does just a kiss count?' _she asked herself_._

"Yes," Emma said. Rogue looked up at her again. "_Just_ a kiss counts," Emma answered disgusted.

"Hmm… then those three in the car and in my bedroom he kissed me… and then just now in his office," she said as imagines popped into her mind from each event. Rogue took a deep breath as she pushed them back.

"Five then," Emma said quietly.

"Yeah, and he kinda promised that we're gonna have sex tonight. Even though I told him I don't want too. Of course, why would it matter what the _captive_ thinks?" Rogue asked bitterly before sighing. "God, I hate this shit. Neither of us know if Gray's gonna be okay and all we can do is _sit_ here and hope that jackass is in too good a mood ta hurt anyone. Fucking bullshit," she mumbled as she continued to hug herself: waiting for the car to warm up enough to turn on the heat.

"I have my suitcase in the truck. I'll give you a shirt to wear," she offered she started to regain her composure.

"I- thanks, Emma," Rogue said surprised by her kindness. "But-" she started to say as Emma opened her door, "I don't want to get ya in trouble or anything," she said.

"Giving you a shirt would get me into trouble?" she asked in disbelief.

"It's_ Eric_," Rogue said. Anger flashed across Emma's face.

"I'm giving you a shirt," Emma said in anger as she stepped out of the car. "He can have both our memories erased if that's too severe a crime," Emma muttered as she closed the door behind her.

* * *

Graydon slowly realized that he had control over his body again as he opened his eyes. He looked up to see Magneto sitting behind his desk. He also realized that he was seated, in one of the seats facing the desk.

"You may leave us now Ms. Manh," Magneto said. Graydon flinched slightly at the sound of the door closing behind him. Graydon took a deep breath as he waited for Magneto to speak again. He watched Magneto read over a piece of paper. "I understand you wish to speak with me about my relationship with Rogue," Magneto said as he glanced up from the paper to look Graydon in the eyes.

"Ye- yes, sir," Graydon managed to say.

"And what is it exactly you would like to discuss, Mr. Creed?" Magneto asked.

"I… sir- …I." He had wanted to talk to Magneto about it, but now that he was here sitting in front of the man he was speechless.

"Allow me to paraphrase your concerns biased upon the conversation you just had with Ms. Frost," Magneto said as he held up the piece of paper again.

"Sir?" he asked confused.

"Although I am teaching your sister a great deal, that woman has managed to teach me a few things as well. In particular the importance of how one words their sentences. In your case you asked Emma" he started to say as he moved the paper in front of his face, "'Is Magneto sexually assaulting my little sister?'" he read off the paper.

"Emma answered yes, however, let me assure you the answer to that question is a definitive _no_," Magneto paused for a moment to let Graydon absorb his words. "The definition of sexual assault is any _unwanted_ contact of a sexual nature on another person: including, but not limited to, molestation… and rape. I have said this to Rogue several times, but I will only say this to _you…_ _once_. I have never, and will never _rape_ Anna Marie Creed."

* * *

Rogue sat in Emma's car glancing out the window. In the mirror she gazed at her reflection: the white button down Emma gave her, along with the heat in the car was keeping her warm. She turned to look at Emma.

"You wanna go in there help him, don't you?" Rogue asked.

"Yes," she answered as she looked away from Rogue.

"But you're not gonna because you're afraid of what Eric will do to you and Graydon if you tried anything," Rogue said. Emma nodded with a sigh. Rogue snorted in disbelief. "You're as much a prisoner here as I am," she said. Emma looked at Rogue with wide eyes.

"No, I'm not," she said softly in disbelief.

"Then go in there and tell Magneto that you're taking Graydon back to D.C," Rogue said.

"I can't do that," she exclaimed.

"Why?" Rogue asked. "Because you _want _to be in Bayville? Because you wanna sit here in this car waiting for him to _let _you see your boyfriend? Or because you _know_ that if you tried to do something that Magneto is against he will use his powers or his resources to keep you from stepping out of line?" she asked.

"That is not true," she insisted softly as she shook her head no.

"That's how Magneto works," Rogue insisted. "He helps you with some part of your life and then you feel like you owe him everything for it," Rogue said. She watched Emma eyes widen. "Then he asks you do things that you're willing to do, but if he ever wants ya ta do something you're truly against then… then he's willing ta threaten you," Rogue said. Emma looked over at Rogue. "He uses fearand intimidationto get _us_ to do what he wants," she finished. Rogue watched Emma place her hand over her mouth: her eyes closed as tears ran down her face.

'_I wish I had some tissues or something to give her,'_ Rogue thought.

"Glove compartment," Emma managed to say. Rogue reached down opened up the glove compartment and took out a hand full of napkins.

"Here," Rogue said as she held out the napkins to her.

"Thank you," she mumbled as she one out of Rogues hand.

"Anytime," Rogue uttered before they fell into an uncomfortable silent.

* * *

"Graydon," Magneto said from behind his desk, "I suppose I should inform that I am _in love_ with your sister," Magneto said as Graydon eyes widened. "Although she does not fully return my feelings: she does care quite deeply about me. And those feeling have continued to grow the more time she and I spend together: partially working on her gaining control over her powers. She has also shown an interest in strategical disciplines. She and I have spent a great deal of time discussing strategy: almost exclusively the strategies we are implementing here in Bayville," he said before he placed the piece of paper down on the desk.

"Which is why, unlike the rest of the x-men, she alone is aware of my dealings here. She and I refer to her current rank as captive because there are quite a few actions I am engaging in that she does not morally agree with. But why should she? You know what I am doing here. You have assisted me in the containment of your younger brother and the rest of the x-men , brotherhood, and your mother, of course. I have seen disapproval on your face, Graydon. I see it there now."

"And I know that the only thing that has kept you from speaking your mind is considerable amount of respect you have for me: a respect that has been shaken by my relationship with your… seventeen year old baby sister. That I regret. When that aspect of our relationship started I knew there would be consequences. How could there not be with the difference in our age? Although I was not the one who initiated the relationship- _not _that that is an _excuse_."

"When she kissed me the first time, I should have told her it was inappropriate and ended it there before anything had begun. But the poor girl- A mere moment before she kissed me, she _hugged _me for the first time. And I learned that that was the first hug she had received since her powers had manifested… And Graydon... I was _appalled_. Over a year she had her powers, and not one individual had shown her a single act of intimacy: sexual or otherwise. Not Charles, her friends, not even your mother had acknowledged that she was a human being in need of companionship: in need of some type of physical contact."

"And then she kissed me…" Magneto paused a moment and let out a long sigh. "And then the poor girl _apologized_ for kissing me. And I knew right then that my next sentence, my next action, would determine how she viewed herself completely for years to come. I knew then that I had the power to _erase_ a year's worth of negative self-perceptions… so I made my choice… now barely two months later we have the utterly brilliant, self confident young woman that she is today and _that…_ I do not regret," he said strongly.

* * *

Rogue gasped as she watched Emma open her door. Rogue reached over and put her hand on Emma's arm stopping her.

"What are you doing?" Rogue asked.

"I'm going to go talk to Magneto. I can't sit out here any longer," she said.

"Are you insane," she exclaimed. "He gave you an order: a _direct_ order. If you disobey him… I don't know what'll happen, but it won't be good," she said.

"But-" Emma started to say.

"No, buts… Now close your door, it's cold," Rogue said. Emma closed the door in defeat. "I'm sure Graydon's gonna be fine. Eric for some reason still wants me on his side. Hurting my brother's ain't the best way to achieve that," Rogue said attempting to comfort her. Emma slipped her arm out of Rogue's hand, and moved her hand to hold Rogue's.

"Do you really think he'll be alright?" Emma asked.

"Yeah, I do," Rogue said. "… I'm sorry about what I said this afternoon… about how you follow orders blindly," Rogue said.

"Don't be," Emma said as she met Rogue's gaze. "You were right," she said before letting out a long sigh.

Rogue flinched as she heard green sleeves playing from her jacket pocket. She reaching into her pocket and took out the phone: answering it.

"Hello?" Rogue asked.

"Anna," Magneto said, "Give the phone to Emma," he commanded.

"Is Graydon okay?" Rogue asked.

"Now, Anna," Magneto ordered. Rogue rolled her eyes with a sigh as she moved the phone away from her ear.

"He wants to talk to you," Rogue said as she held out the phone. Emma took a deep breath as she took the phone with her free hand.

"Sir?" Emma asked as silent tears ran down her face.

* * *

"Emma, are you alright?" Magneto asked into the phone. "You don't sound like yourself. You sound as though you have just been weeping," he said. Magneto watched Graydon get to his feet.

"Is she okay?" Graydon asked softly. Over the phone he could hear sharp inhales of breath: no doubt she was still crying.

"Go," Magneto said to Graydon, "They are in your car," he said. Graydon quickly left the office. '_Anna, what have you done?'_ he asked in his thoughts as went over to his desk. He picked up a note-pad and pen and headed out of the office. "Emma, I need you to calm down. Graydon is on his way to you now. Everything is alright," he said calmly.

* * *

Rogue watched Emma cry quietly as she held onto the phone. Rogue began to smile as she saw her brother running up to the car.

"He's okay," Rogue said relieved. "Emma look," she said. Emma slowly glanced out the window to see him: as soon as she saw him she threw open her door and ran out of the car into his arms.

"Graydon… oh God, Graydon… I was so worried," she cried into his shoulder.

"Shh… I'm okay," he whispered into her hair. Rogue moved to her open her door but found it would not opened. Her heart began to race as she saw Magneto heading out of the restaurant and towards the car. She gasped as the seatbelt moved seemingly be itself, once again trapping her in the seat.

For the second time that day she watched with fear-filled eyes as Magneto got into the car.

"Rogue, what did you do to Emma?" Magneto

"I didn't do anything to Emma," Rogue said confused. Magneto eyes narrowed as he stared into hers. "I didn't," Rogue insisted. "Don't ya thing if I used my powers on Emma, I'd be, ya know, _using them_?" she asked annoyed.

"Emma, did you and she talk?" Magneto asked loudly as he turned his gaze to look at the Emma and Graydon for a moment.

"Yes… yes, sir," Emma muttered into Graydon's chest.

"I want a transcript of the conversation, now," he said firmly as handed the pen and notepad to Rogue. She placed the pen and pad on her lap and began to write out her and Emma's conversation. She saw Magneto out of the corner of her eye leaning towards her: reading the conversation, as she wrote it. As she wrote she made sure to leave out the few lines when she and Emma discussed the diner conversation. She didn't want Graydon to get into any more trouble than he already was.

"No, give that to me," Magneto said as Rogue was flipping over the first page. She instead ripped it off the pad and handed it to him. "Keep writing," he ordered.

And so she did, until she had written out the entire conversation: every minute or so handing him a new page to read.

"You don't even realize what you've done, do you?" Magneto asked in disbelief.

"What are you talking about? Telling Emma she's a prisoner? If she's afraid to disobey a single order in fear of what you'll do then yeah she's a prisoner. It's blackmail, just like with me," Rogue said.

"So, you do know understand, somewhat, what you have done to her," he said with anger in his voice. Rogue just looked up at him with a confused expression.

"I just told her the truth, what I think," Rogue said.

"You just changed the way she views the last eight years of her life. You singlehandedly altered every perception she has of me," he said annoyed.

"And that's a bad thing because?" she asked mockingly. Magneto let out a sigh.

"You will wait here and you will be _silent_ until I am done repairing the damaged you have caused… or else," he said.

"Or else what?" she asked annoyed.

"We will discuss that later if you force my hand, but I promise you my girl you will not like it," he said.

"Oh, you mean there's something about this captivity I'm supposed to like?" she asked mockingly.

"We both know there is something you enjoy a great deal about this captivity, Anna" he said with a smirk. "If we did not have an audience this would be one of those moment I would kiss you… just to prove a point," he said as his eyes glanced over her lips. She sucked in a breath. "Silent, Anna," he said sternly. "Both physically, and mentally," he said. She opened her mouth to speak. "You have done it before: at the café, and other instances where you did not wish for me to read your mind. You will do so now. Not one coherent thought in your mind, or sound out of thar mouth: just listen. Do you understand what I am demanding of you?" he asked.

She just glared at him with narrowed eyes.

"That's my girl," he said with a smirk before he stepped out of the car: closing the door behind him. She watched him walk up to Emma and Graydon.

"Emma, Graydon" Magneto said as he approached them. "I would never hurt either you … I do not understand where either of you received the impression that are _acceptable losses. _There are_ no_ acceptable losses," he said in disgust. "Not one," he said strongly. "I cannot express strongly enough how _invaluable_ you both are to me. That is why I needed you both in Bayville at this time. It is why I will _always_ need you in Washington, Graydon," he said as he placed his hand on Graydon's shoulder.

"I understand that Rogue said some truly hurtful thing about my character. That I am willing to threaten those whose council I hold in such high esteem. She, unfortunately, speaks of personal experience. I have threatened to take her from the institute if she cannot keep my secrets, and this was after I gave her the choice to forget it all and be like all the other x-men: utterly clueless of my dealings here in Bayville."

"She chose _truth_ over a façade. And so yes, I expect her to keep my secrets from the x-men because_ she_ has elected to have that knowledge. Knowledge I have not forced upon her: knowledge I am not forcing her to keep. Earlier this evening when you came to speak to me, Graydon, Ms. Manh overreacted. And I knew that Rogue would as well, _that_ is why I asked you to take her outside Emma. I knew the she would never attack you, never attempt to use her powers on you. I knew that you, out of all those present tonight, would be safe with her alone…" he let out a sigh.

"Or so I thought… Rogue said what she did basied upon a misjudged notion of right and wrong: not as the three of us understand it. She does not fully comprehend my vision as you two do. Yes, I know I have stated that Rogue's knowledge is only secondary to mine: in terms of facts that is true. Rogue knows more about what I do here in Bayville than anyone else: but the ideology behind those actions that… that I am still teaching her. And I have such high hopes for her, as I had in both of you when you both her age…I hope that both of you can understand my actions, as she does not. And I pray that I have your approval… and respect," he finished.

"Sir, I don't know what to say," Emma said.

"You don't have to say anything at the moment…Neither of you are required to say a word. Take all the time you need to sort through your doubts. I know that you both have them now, and I suspect that it will take some time for those doubts to be truly diminished… For now what I require of you both is quite simple…please go inside and enjoy your diners… Rogue and I, if I can convince her to eat with us peacefully, will hopefully be in shortly. If not I will have to take her home: in which case I will no doubt retire for the night. We all have a very long day ahead of us tomorrow," he finished as he gestured towards the restaurant.

Rogue watched Graydon and Emma slowly turn and walk towards the restaurant. Graydon had his arm around Emma's shoulder: she had her arm around his waist: neither of them turned back to look at Rogue before they entered the restaurant.

* * *

Yeah, it's a finished chapter! Okay, so now this night is going to be three chapters because this one began way more epic than I had intended!

I'm so sorry this took me so long to get out. But, college and gradation and all that: it took some time. And then after writing that textbook I needed a couple of days away from a computer: which turned into a week. But the day before yesterday I got back on the computer opened up what I already had of the chapter and started writing: two epic ideas later and here we are with this chapter!

Once again this was an experimental chapter and I need feedback: please tell me what you think! Good or bad? Did I change point of view/ scenes too many times, or did it work for the plot like I think it did? Anything feedback will be appreciated!

PLEASE REVIEW!

Speaking of which:

Original1: Graydon's characterization is a bit more complex than that. In the comics (Earth 616) Graydon hates mutants because his parents abandoned him as a child, he was raised in a prep-school environment with strong Anti-Mutant views and then later in his life found out that the parents who had abandoned him were both mutants. His past set him up for the hatred he has for all mutant kind.

In my story however his parents raise him for most of his life. (If he wasn't living with his parents than he was being taken raised by Irene, also a mutant) This serves to give Graydon a loving home with a completely mutant family: his mother, father, sister, foster mother, friends, etc. The fact that they were all mutants was never hidden in the family, either. So, Graydon grew up with a blue mother, hairy clawed father, with the viewpoint that that was normal. When he found out that he was not a mutant (Reaching puberty and not gaining any powers) he was deeply disappointed by this. But instead of setting his differences from his family make him an outcast he decided to make it strength to his family by going to school to become a politician, by majoring in political science: which is when Magneto approached him and took him under his wing (so to speak). And yes, the fact that he is dating Emma does strengthen his resolve towards the mutant cause. He knows that if he stays with Emma that his children with her will most likely be mutants. So he continues to fight for the cause for his family, the love of his life, and his future children.

Anyway, I'm really glad that you loved the chapter and I hope you loved this one as well! Thank you reading, the lovely review! I'm thanks for the "good luck!" I'm done with school now, so yeah! I hope to hear from you again!

Warrioroftheseventhstar: I'm not sure yet, honestly. As I was writing it was I thinking "wow, what a bitch you are making Shan into…what's going on there, in the comics she's all motherly towards the new mutants because she's older than all of them, and has her brother and sister to raise… what are you doing to her character, Christina? What are you doing? … " For the plot I needed a telepath to overact to Graydon's actions and all the other telepaths Magneto has in Bayville were busy doing their jobs, she was the only one free for the diner. So, I had to make her do it.

To answer your question (Finally) I'm still deciding if that's her character or not. I have a great backstory (taken from the comics, mixed with what if's this had happened) to explain the large changes in her personality but I'm not sure yet.

You know a bit about her character in the comics right? Do you mind giving me your opinion? **(Anyone else who happens to read this too?)** Okay so here's the back story: in the comics Shan comes to America from Vietnam during the Vietnam war. She fights and kills her twin brother. She and her mother are raped by pirates and her mother is killed. Some stuff happened with her crime lord uncle and he kidnapped the children. Spiderman, the fantastic four, and Xavier help her get her brother and sister back. (Except for the last sentence, Shan has a super depressing past).

So, here my take on it for the story: what if Spiderman and the fantastic four don't exist on this earth (which they don't) and Shan never received the help she needed to get her brother and sister away from her uncle? What if she was forced to help him to keep the kids safe for many years until the children were accidently killed by the crime lords enemies? Then she would stop helping her uncle because she didn't have too anymore, and she would just be kind of angry… all the time. Is that too mean of a past? What do you think? Any ideas? (Is this response too long?)

Thanks for any feedback, for the review and for reading! I hope to hear from you again.

Le Diable Blanc: Please don't be insane yet! Here's the update! Sorry I took so long… Thank you for reading!

Alienaracher: I will update NOW! Thanks for reading and for adding my fic to your favorite story list! I hope to hear from you again.

Erisna Deathclaw: Thanks for reading and for the story alert!

Crazyjess09: JESS! Thanks for the review! I love reading them. I hope you loved this chapter, and I hope to hear from you again.

Indiana9311: Thanks for reading and for the story alert!


	26. Chapter 25

Hello everyone! Us usual I'm sorry this took so long to get up! Please read the bold note at the end of the chapter. I'm asking you all to vote on the plot for the next chapter again. Thank you everyone for reading. I really hope that you all enjoy it.

* * *

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Twenty-Five

Magneto watched his two subordinates walk away contently back into the restaurant. He gave out a dark chuckle at his triumph.

'_There is rarely a dull moment with you around, my girl,_' Magneto thought to Rogue's future self: his eyes were lit up with pride. He turned his head towards the car to glance at Rogue. She stared back at him with narrowed eyes: breathing hard. _'What are we going to do with all that pent up anger of yours, Anna?' _he asked with a smirk. _'I have a few ideas, of course,' _he thought as an image of her lying naked on a bed beneath him: her face flushed with color: popped into his mind.

He indulged the thought for a moment before he pushed it out of his mind. He chuckled at his own mind. Why should he fantasize about the girl when she was only a feet away? Trapped in a car: completely at his mercy…

He watched her inhale sharply as though she knew what he was thinking. _'Perhaps you did,'_ he thought with a chuckle as he started to walk. He watched her eyes widen as he walked away from Graydon's car and towards the institute's van.

He opened the driver's car door and got into it. He started the car as he glanced through the rearview mirror at Rogue. She was still staring at him: refusing to look away._ 'Like a mouse watching: waiting to see when the cat will strike,_' he smirked at the thought as he turned his gaze away from hers and onto the clock: it read 11:35pm. _'Almost,'_ he thought. _'What am I going to distract you with for the next twenty-five minutes?' _he asked himself as he glanced at her again.

He laughed as a notion came to mind.

* * *

Rogue's anger had diminished as watched Magneto move around the parking lot. She had no idea what he was up to. And as usual her lack of knowledge terrified her: she was terrified of him. Rogue watched Magneto get into the driver's seat of Graydon's car. She turned her head forward not wanting to look at him. Out of the corner of her eye she saw him turn towards her. She heard him take a breath, still staring at her. Was he waiting for her to speak?

"That was-," she said quietly. "I can't believe they actually believed that crap," she muttered disappointed. "You didn't tell them _anything_. You made me keep your secrets before you_ ever_ gave me a choice, and… and that choice wasn't-"

"Nearly as simply as I allowed them to believe. I know," he said gently. She turned to look at him but was stopped by the seatbelt.

"Can I _please_ take this thing off?" she asked annoyed as she pulled at the seatbelt. She heard a click and let go of the seatbelt. She let out a sigh in relief as she watched it move off her body. She turned to face him: putting her back again the car door.

"I told the truth when I was talking to Emma," Rogue said. "If she's too afraid of what you might do to her or Graydon to step out of line, then it's blackmail. You're controlling her with threats the same way you are with me," she said. Magneto let out a soft chuckle.

"Anna, why do you go to your participate in danger room sessions?" he asked.

"Why are asking me that?" she asked confused.

"To prove an ideological point," he answered. She blinked surprised at his answer. "Anna, please answer the question," he said.

"Because, I'm part of the team," she said.

"Charles is also part of the x-man, its leader, and yet he has never been in the danger room itself during one of those sessions. He has only-" He paused for a moment as he glanced at Rogue. "... Alright, let me ask this a different way. What would happen if you _were not_ present during your mandatory danger room sessions?" he asked.

She thought about it for a moment before she rolled her eyes.

"I'd be reprimanded," she said.

"You would be subject to a social sanction," he said.

"But it's not the same thing," she said. "Being yelled at for not being in the danger room is completely different from being afraid for your life if I don't follow your orders," she said. He gazed at her in disbelief.

"Are _you_ afraid for your life, Anna?" he asked as he leaned forward towards her: she could hear the slightest trace of irritation in his voice. "Do you _actually_ fear that I will_ kill_ you?" he asked upset.

"I-" she started to say before an image of him staring at her coldly popped into her mind. It took effort to push it back. She closed her eyes and tears ran down her face.

"Anna?" he asked concerned.

"When- when you pushed me against the wall after I punched you… you- ya looked like you wanted to kill me. I- I've seen you kill someone before," she said her voice shaking. "I know what- …what you look like when you're that angry," she said. "You looked that angry then," she whispered. "I thought that would, if I didn't say what you wanted me. If thought you would," she said slowly as she opened her eyes. She gasped as the car doors opened.

"Anna, when you're ready please step out of the car," he said delicately. She watched him get out. She quickly got out and put a few feet between her and the metal cage. She stood shivering and watched with uncertainty as Magneto walked up to her.

He stared down at her for a moment.

She flinched, taking a step backwards, as he took his brown trench-coat off. He took a step forward and draped the coat around her. She immediately felt warmer.

"I am sorry that you are so frightened of me. I know that I have given you just cause to be, but I hope," he said as he placed his hands on her arms, "that this will help to disaffirm your fears… I promise you Anna Marie, right here, right now: I am giving you my word that you will _outlive_ me," he said. Her neck snapped up to meet his gaze. His eyes bore into hers filled with conviction.

"How do I know that you're telling me the truth?" she asked desperately. "What if you're just telling me what I want to hear? The same way you did with them," she said.

"I am not lying to you," he said gently. "I meant _every_ word. I understand if you cannot accept my statements as truth… yet. But given enough time you will see. I will prove it to you," he said strongly. "_I_ am not going to die anytime this _century_, and neither are you, my girl," he said before he leaned in and gave her a kiss on the forehead. Her eyes widened in shock as she sucked in a breath.

"The rebirth machine," she whispered.

"I'll drag you kicking and screaming into it if I must," he said: she could feel him smiling against her forehead before he kissed it. "I have already lost one woman I loved to time, I will not lose another. I will not lose _you_ that way. Not when I have the means at my disposal to prevent it," said: kissing her forehead again.

Her eyes closed as she tried to absorb what he had said.

'_He just-,'_ she started to think.

"My love," he said tenderly as he pulled away slightly: effectively pulling Rogue out of her thoughts. She titled her head up to meet his glace: her breathing heavy. "You shall not perish while there is still a breath of life in my body: you have my word," he said staring into her eyes. She lifted her hands up and placed them on his chest.

"Did you just promise to-" she started to ask in disbelief. "What if- what if it's a _choice_ between your life or mine?" she asked softly: her voice barely above a whisper.

"I will choose yours...," he promised gazing into eyes. "The thought of living in this world without you, Anna, is... It's _unfathomable_ to me," he said as he cupped her hand with his own: she curled her fingers around his. "Not while I am this powerful will I fail to protect the one I love," he said.

He leaned in and kissed her. Magneto had just promised to die for her: she couldn't stop herself from responding. She pushed herself closer to him as his hand wrapped around her waist. She parted her lips and allowed him to deepen the kiss.

After a long moment he broke the kiss, and pulled away slightly so he could gaze into her eyes. "You've asked me today what it is that has changed: what am I planning. Do you still wish to know?" he asked.

"Yes," she answered breathlessly.

"In two days time I am going to reveal mutant kinds existence to the world," he said. Her eyes widened. "I was not expecting this," he said as he rubbed the back of her hand with his thumb. "You can understand that…," he said before pausing.

"Understand what, Eric?" she asked.

"No- would…," he uttered. She stared up at him in confusion. "Anna, when we are alone would you please call me Max?" he asked. She hesitated: startled at the question. After a moment she nodded slowly. He continued to stare into her eyes: waiting for her to speak again.

"… Max" she uttered. She watched his eyes light up as he smiled warmly at her. He moved his hand from her waist to her face: cupping her cheek he caressing it.

"Address me by that name again?" he asked gently.

"…Max," she said. He pulled her face to his: his lips crashing into hers.

"Thank you, beloved," he murmured before kissing her again. He pulled back and she opened her eyes to see his cell phone flying through the air towards them. His hand left her cheek and he grabbed onto the phone. "It's five past midnight," he informed her.

"Okay," she said quietly.

"I recall making you a promise in your friend's car," he said as he put the phone into his pocket.

"Yeah, you… you said that you wouldn't change your mind about not taking me home until tomorrow," she said.

"That was yesterday," he commented with a small smile.

"So, what does that mean?" she asked as she slipped her hand out of his.

"You have to understand I do not wish for you to be hurt. I'm inclined to keep you away from dangerous places, and at the moment Bayville is a very dangerous place. Between myself, Mystique," he started to list, "and the sentinel," he said with a laugh.

"Sentinel?" she asked.

"It is a mutant hunting robot," he answered. Her eyes widened in fear. "It's alright, Anna," he said warmly. "It's consists mostly of metal. Nothing I cannot destroy with a single thought," he said with a smile. She found herself letting out a sigh in relief. "There has never been this many mutants collectively in one place before," he explained. "The institute, in particular, is an extremely perilous location at the moment," he said.

"So, were not going back there," she said.

"You're not," he corrected. "I have too tomorrow."

"And I have no say, of course," she said crossing her arms over her chest.

"Captor's privilege," he said with a grin: she rolled her eyes.

"When are you gonna bring me back?" she asked. She watched his eyes widen for fraction of a second before returning to normal.

"There's a problem there, I'm afraid-" he started to say.

"I _get_ to go back," she said strongly. "I haven't told anyone what's going on. I've kept my word. When is this gonna be over?" she asked.

"This time everyone will remember. The world will know that we exist. It will never be over," he said.

"That's not what I-" she started to say. "You gonna reveal mutants to the world. Fine, but then after you do that you don't need Bayville anymore," she said.

"The situation is not that simple," he said.

"Well, you won't need the Professor anymore. You could let him go and he can go to the institute," she started to say.

"I was not planning to release him," he told her. Rogue felt her heart skip a beat.

"Why?" she asked.

"Honestly, Anna, I just don't like the man," he answered. She stared up at him incredulously.

"That's not a good enough reason to hold someone captive indefinitely," she yelled. "_No_ reason is good enough to hold me or anyone else against their will indefinitely," she said strongly.

"Anna," he said gently as he took towards her: reaching out for her.

"No," she growled taking a quick step away from him. "You have to have a better reason than that," she demanded.

"I do," he assured her. "This is all a part of a much larger plan."

"And that is?" she asked panicked.

"_That_ question I can not answer," he said. She took a deep breath. "If you've noticed I have been answering your questions," he said.

"Yeah, I noticed," she said with a nod. She took another deep breath. "Well- ...Okay, what's gonna happen now? How much danger is my family in?" she asked.

"No one will be killed," he told her.

"That doesn't answer my question," she said annoyed. "… If I don't get go back to the institute I won't trust a word you say: not one. All the work you put into keeping your promise it'll all be for _nothing_ if you don't _let_ me go back to the institute and my family," she ranted. "My _entire_ family, Max: Prof included," she added.

"Anna, this is-" he said taking a stride towards her.

"The only weapon I have," she yelled. "Do you really expect me to stand here and do nothing?" she asked disbelievingly. He let out a sigh.

"_Years_ of planning, Rogue, all for this week. I cannot alter those plans to appease you," he said gently. "Even if I wanted to, it's too late."

"No," she said shaking her head in disbelief. She had already lost three families: three homes, three sets of parents. She wasn't ready to lose another. She wasn't ready to give up her little brother. _'No one will be killed,'_ she replayed in her mind. _'But that doesn't mean noones gonna be hurt. I- ... I have to do something. I can't let this happen: _"_Not when I have the means at my disposal to prevent it,"'_ she thought to herself: quoting Max. She glanced up at Magneto: he was her means.

"_Do_ you want to?" she asked.

"An-"

"If there was a way for you to get whatever it is you want out of Bayville, and I could keep my family, would you do it?" she asked.

"It's not possible," he said.

"You let me worry about that," she said: as he raised an eyebrow "…_You_ said I'm a strategist. Okay, I'll be a strategist. I'll be _your _strategist," she said taking a step towards him. "You tell me everything's that gonna happen. I have two days, and you have _telepaths_ who can put _any_ back story you want into someone's mind," she said. "I can do this," she said strongly. "You say that you enjoy _testing_ the limits of my capabilities. Let's see if I'm capable of this," she finished.

"If I do not approve of this plan of yours I will not use it," he said seriously, "it must be feasible and adhere to _my_ standards."

"I understand," she said.

"You would _working_ for me. You would be saying yes to the position of second in command, and you will have to play your part. You will have to help me achieve my goals here in Bayville: even if those goals are in exact opposition to x-men's, and I assure you, my girl, they will be. Can you agree to all of that? You will no longer be a captive, but a co-conspirator if you do. You will be my accomplice," he finished.

"Can you promise to tell me everything I need to know about your plans, Bayville, and the people you got here?" she asked.

"Yes," he asnwered. "Can you really betray your family?"

"I'm doing this to save them. That ain't betrayal," she told him.

"I doubt Charles would agree with your assessment," he said.

"After this is over, I'm not gonna work for you anymore. So, what happens to me after that?" she asked.

"If you are able to deliver me the strategy we both need? Then I will keep my word and allow you to return to family, but as a captive," he pointed out as he walked up to her. She nodded.

"So, are you gonna tell him? Cause I won't be able to," she said. He laughed loudly as he put his hand on her shoulder.

"Is that a yes then?" he said with laugh.

"Yes," she said. He smiled his laughter stopping.

"Yes, what?" he asked.

"You know what," she said.

"This might be the only time I ever get to hear you say it. It's customary to humor your future employer on an interview. Humor me?" he asked. She sighed.

"Yes, I'll join you," she said. She watched his smile widen "But untill I can go back to the institute and my family," she said.

"There's going to be a bit of a wait, I'm afraid," he said as he started to walk towards the x-van.

"Why?" she asked.

"Because you and I are going to blow up the institute tomorrow afternoon," he said.

"What?" she exclaimed as he chuckled.

"That part of the plan is _nonnegotiable_. I will explain everything else on the way to my house. Commander Creed?" he asked with a smirk as he held open the passender side door for her. She glared at him as she marched up to the car. "Would you prefer Captain?" he asked as she got into the van. She didn't respond: instead rolling her eyes as she watched him circle the van and get in. "I think I just keep testing these titles, until we find one that fits," he said before chuckling. She sighed.

"This is only _temporary_," she reminded him as they he started the van.

"So, you're stating that I should enjoy your new rank and all the intimacies that it allows for the short while you are in employ? Excellent advice, Admiral Anna: I knew there was reason I selected you as my second in command," he said with a grin as he pulled out of the parking space. She let out a sigh.

"The plan, Max?" she asked annoyed. He chuckled.

"Of course, I'll start at the beginning…"

* * *

Okay, that's it for this chapter. I know it's been another month. Stupid job hunting…being an adult! Anyway, I have a few questions for all of you. Please feel free to answer one, all, or none of them! (All would be extremely appreciated ^.^) Thank you in advance to anyone who chooses to answer a question!

1)Do you have any questions about what's going on in the fic? Or would you like to know more details about a certain character or situation? If so, what, who or where? I would like to answer the questions/ address the issues that you care about. So, please ask!

2)Is the army rank name calling thing I had Magneto do too corny/ too out of character for him? I find it funny as all hell, but I would like your opinion!

3)Is anyone unhappy with the way the fic is progressing? If so, why?

**4) (Please answer this one: it's VOTING for the plot of the next chapter!) **

Plot A) Would you like to hear the explanation of what's going in Bayville from Magneto?

Plot B) Or do you want me to skip ahead to after the conversation and have Rogue sum it up in her mind before she starts into the her planning?

Plot C) Or would you like me to skip a little more so forward in the timeline where Rogue has already come up with the plan and you all find out if it's going to be implemented or not?

* * *

Review time!

Warrioroftheseventhstar: You never need to apologize for a long review, and definitely not for giving good advice! I'm going to keep the new back story for Shan I told you about, but I'm not going to make an effort to tell the other readers about it unless asked. I think that's best. Both of us understand why she is the way she is. Anyone else who wants to know: all they have to do is ask!

"Really good way of showcasing Rogue's stratigics. Kind of puts her in the same league as Eric (not sure if that is what you were going for)."

Actually, that's exactly what I'm going for! I've been working up to this slowly though out the fic. I'm glad that you noticed and liked the showcasing of it! Thank you for the advice, reading, reviewing, and for being awesome! I hope to hear from you again!

LadyNorth76: I'm glad that you liked her effect on Emma! Thank you for that. ^.^ I hope you loved this chapter and I hope to hear for you again.

Tenchi13: :) Thanks for reading and reviewing! I hope you liked this chapter and I hope to hear from you again

Nikki: ^.^ Sorry they aren't new chapters more often! Thanks for reading and reviewing it means a lot and keeps me writing! I hope to hear from you again.

Alienarcher326: Great timing with this review ^.^ I'm updating today! I hope you love it! And I hope to hear from you again?


	27. Chapter 26

Hey, I'm sorry it taking me so long to update! I no longer have a computer of my own. I've been working on the fic on my cousin's computer whenever she was kind enough to allow me to use it. I have no idea how this is going to work when she goes back to school. I'll figure it out.

For now, a quick note: I am not given a detailed description of Magneto's house. It honestly doesn't matter what it looks like. Picture whatever you want to picture.

Please enjoy!

* * *

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Twenty-Six

Rogue took a deep breath as Magneto finished explaining his plan. Despite promising to tell her everything he kept most of his details limited to the x-men's involvement within his scheme.

"_If you need to know more about my associates then ask. I will answer the question in accordance to the relevance of the information to your strategy," he had told her._

"Do you have other questions, _Chief_?" he asked from his seat. They had arrived at his house about five minutes ago but he had elected to stay in the car as he explained his plan. She turned to glare at him but was met with only a chuckle and his smile. "Take your time, my girl," he said he opened his door and got out of the car. She let out a sigh as got out of the car as well. She let her thought wander to through their conversation as they walked towards his large house.

Magneto's main goal was simple: to reveal mutant kind to the world. Much of the plan relied on the abilities of his team of telepaths to control the many factions within Bayville.

Rogue found herself asking early in the conversation, _"Just how many telepaths do you have, Max?" _The answer was an astonishing eight: Blindspot, Elizabeth Braddock, Shan Manh, Jason Wyngarge, his daughters Regan and Martinique Wyngarge, Emma Frost, and her younger sister Cordelia Frost.

"_There are many more pieces to this chess set than you realize, my girl," she recalled Magneto saying. "I am controlling a _city_, Anna. Bayville's population is just over six thousand. Eight is hardly inappropriate-"_

"_The entire situation is inappropriate," she interjected._

"_Is it?" he asked mockingly. "Personally, I find allowing _genocide_ to go undisrupted unspeakable."_

"_What the fuck are you talking about?" she yelled. "No one's said_ anything_ about genocide." _

"_Because _I_ have not allowed them to formulate the thought," he said in abhorrence "Trask is currently satisfied with simply leveling the playing field in human favor. His ambitions will grow far beyond that if left unattended… Eight itself seems inappropriate once the scope of our situation is taken into account, doesn't it Anna?" he asked. She didn't reply. "Bayville is not the only site where my influence is known. _Eight, _three of which are terribly inexperienced when compared to their mentors,_ _is as many as I can afford to spare," he said._

Most of the ground work for the plan was already in place. Mystique was "in charge" of the brotherhood and x-men. Logan had already been kidnapped by Trask's anti-mutant faction.

"_So, that's what you did this afternoon? You had Logan abducted by some political fanatic-" Rogue recalled saying._

"_Trask," Magneto interjected. "The man's name is Bolivar Trask," he informed._

"_I really don't give a shit what the bastard's name is," she informed him. He had chuckled softly before continuing._

Conveniently, there was an anti-mutant faction whose base had been established almost a year ago in Downtown Bayville. Magneto planned to have Mystique order both teams into a search party for Logan. As the teams were searching for Wolverine they would find the sentinel. The robot would attack and the fight would be caught by the news: revealing mutant kind to the world.

"_The main goal of this strategy, as I'm sure you realized," Magneto started to say, "is to reveal mutant kind to the world. I have known that this day was going to come for many years now. Charles is wrong," he said strongly. "It does not matter how the emergence happens the mutant race will be met with distrust and hate. No amount of education or positive media coverage will cause their reactions to be any different. Factions such as Trask's are only the beginning. If these fanatics are not controlled, if the emergence is not controlled, then _countless_ mutants will be murdered senselessly," he said in disgust. "I will_ not_ allow that to happen," he told her._

The sentinel would then proceed to arrest most of the members of both teams. However, a small group of mutants would be allowed to escape back to the institute only to be contained there, along with the all of the institute's students.

_"Oh," she replayed Magneto's words, "and then the institute is going to explode," he said offhandedly._

_"Why?" she demanded to know._

_"I paid for the building. I should be able to destroy it at my leisure," he replied calmly. She rolled her eyes: for the moment ignoring the implications of his words._

_"But everyone's already been taken captive. What's the point?" she asked._

"_The media will begin to record coverage of Xavier's former home. A collapsed building with various pieces of debris and_ weapons_ spread across the yawn will leave a much stronger impression than a sound structure, don't you think?" he asked with a grin._

"…_You want us to be feared, don't you?" she asked._

"_Yes, yes I do," he answered. "They should fear us," he said._

"_Of course they should fear _you_. You're the one who's controlling thousands of people, and you expect none of them to attack back," she said in disbelief. "You're gonna start a war," she said._

"_In a War, Anna, neither side is certain who will win, and the body counts, the _casualties_," he said in disgust, "are endless. Those are two aspects of this conflict I will not permit…War? No, my dear girl, there will be no war. No, I'm going to watch the board from above as I control all the piece's movements," he paused smiling widely, "at the moment, my girl, as the both of _us_ control their movements."_

Once everyone had been transported back to the faction's base they would be jailed for a short while until Magneto arrived to rescue them all.

"_Then you get to the big _hero_," Rogue had said bitterly. "While everything you've ever said about mutant and human relations being proved right with one fucking action," she said irate. "Un-fucking-believable," she muttered as she stared out the window. "…Then what?" she asked._

Magneto was going to have Trask move Mystique to a different base. Magneto planned to allow her to escape. He planned to blame Mystique for Xavier's abduction. Without her the X- Men would be unable to find Charles. With both Professor Xavier and Mystique locations unknown Magneto assumed that taking control over both teams would be un-difficult.

"_Having a team of telepaths at ya beck and call don't hurt your chances either," she recalled muttering: Max had laughed in response._

Magneto's plan: at least as much as he was willing to explain to her: ended with him claiming control over both of Bayville's teams.

Rogue took a seat on light red couch in his living room as she came out of her thoughts.

"It seems like you really want control of all the teams in Bayville," she said.

"Gaining public control over the X-Men is a benefit to this strategy. For you Anna," he started to say as he took a seat next to her on the couch, "I am willing to temporary relinquish that benefit," he said.

"Temporary?" she asked with a raised eyebrow as she turned to face him.

"A conversation for another day, my girl," he said as he placed his hand on her shoulder. "What I want out of this strategy is our kind to be revealed to the world without a single dead body," he said.

"You also want us to be feared. The way you had things set up I don't think mutants would be tolerated in public much. Not if a whole group of us just escaped from a government base. We would be criminals running from the authorities."

"You misunderstood, Anna. Trask is not a government agent. He cut his ties with S.H.I.E.L.D some years ago," he said.

"You're telling me that the U.S government is gonna have no part of this?" she asked. "There's gonna be panics, people too afraid to leave their house and… Max, if we do this my way then we can't have that effect…" she paused: a few ideas running through her mind. "At least not permanently. Things have to go back to normal, there has to be- Maybe not peace, but I need to be able to live with my family _in_ Bayville: in the institute. Something has to happen in between mutants being revealed and me and family going back home: Something that lets us do that. Something that- that stops the government and Trask from hunting us out in the open like that… I'm sure what yet, but-"

"Anna," Magneto said gently, "we'll talk more tomorrow. We both need some sleep," he said as he rose from the couch.

"Are you insane?" she exclaimed. "I don't have time to sleep. I gotta-"

"Anna, it's-" he said as he turned to face her: staring down at her for a long moment. He looked tired.

"It's what?" she asked slowly.

"It's nearly two in the morning," he uttered.

"I'm not going anywhere. I gotta think," she said. "I only have two days," she said. He looked away from her a moment. He ran his hand through his hair before sighing.

"… If I postpone the emergence until Friday will you sleep then?" he asked.

"I-" Her eyes widened for a brief second before she smiled. "You'd postpone_ just_ ta get me ta get some _sleep_?" she asked with a soft laugh.

"Anna, there's very little I _wouldn't_ do to get you into a bed," he said. She started at him a moment before she broke out into laughter. He let out a soft chuckle.

"Or a wall," she said through her laughter. He laughed.

"Or a couch," he said as he sat next to her again: wrapping an arm around her shoulder. "_Any_ tangible surface really," he said with a chuckle as she continued to laugh. She turned her body to face his.

She looked up at him as her laughter died down she realized how close they were: her face was very close to his. Her eyes shifted to his lips for a fraction of a second before returning to his eyes. She took a deep breath.

"Anna, whatever it is that you are thinking," he said as his thumb rubbed little around her shoulder, "whatever impulse you are feeling at this moment: _please_ stop suppressing it," he said as he rested hand on her hip: his fingers rubbing slightly at her skin. Both their breathing grew heavy: thickened with lust.

"I probably shouldn't," she muttered as she placed her hand on his arm. Her other hand went to his chest: grapping at his shirt. She saw a flush of color rise in his cheeks: no doubt her face was a similar hue.

"Why ever not, my girl?" he asked.

"Beca-" she paused: her usual reasons for denying both their urges currently not present. She looked away from him as she attempted to remind herself why she frequently said no,

"I am not holding you captive at the moment," Magneto said. That was the biggest issue she had with their sexual relationship: the fact that they she was a prisoner.

'_No, right now he's not,'_ she thought to herself. _'You _chose_ to come here with him.'_

"You have my word I will postpone the emergence until Friday." he said as she shifted slightly on the couch moving more of her body onto his. Her leg was now draped over his: his knee pressing up in between her legs.

"You are brilliant, Anna Marie. In three days you will have a strategy that serves both our agendas. I highly doubt that it will take you the full three days to plan. Never-the-less they are yours to do with as you please," he said. She slipped her hand up from his chest to rest against his cheek. He lowered his face closer to hers.

"You're gonna keep your word," she muttered breathlessly.

"Every promise I have ever made to you I will keep," he said strongly gazing deep into her eyes. Rogue paused for a moment, staring at him. She couldn't believe how much she wanted to believe him. She also couldn't fathom how much she really wanted to touch him. They had engaged in sexual behavior before when she still believed that he was the fragment, but somehow this time was different… she knew why of course. Her mind kept drifting back to one thought.

"… Earlier you made me a promise that we would finish-"she started to mutter hers lips brushing against his.

"I remember," he uttered quickly.

"If you don't keep to that promise," she struggled to say. "To all your promises…I- I won't be able to trust- to trust a word you say," she finished: hardly believing that she was going to reuse this argument towards this end. He stared at her a moment as he smiled widely.

"That would be a betrayal of your trust," he chuckled before he kissed her lightly. "All that time and effort I've put," he paused to give her another kiss as both the hand grasped the others, rubbing, "into regaining you confidence-"

"Lost," she muttered as her eyes closed.

"_Wasted_ because I failed to act upon this one promise," he whispered as he moved his knee slightly beneath her. She was panting now: her whole body shaking in anticipating for what they were about to do. "Well, we can't have that now can we?" he asked: he could hear his amusement in his voice, but found that she didn't care.

"No, we- we really-"He gave her a peck on the lips, "really," another peck, "really fucking-"

"My thoughts exactly," he uttered before he crashed his lips into hers: deepening his kiss as her tongue made its way into her mouth. She moaned as he moved his knee against her. Her hand slipped up into his hair pulling her-self even closer to him. He pulled onto his lap fully and began to pull her against him as she wrapped her legs around her back. He leaned forward, laying her down on the couch as his hand began to fumble with the black jacket.

"Wait," she mumbled. He pulled away from her lips.

"Anna-" he became to say: a mix of anger and frustration in his expression.

"No, not to that," she said breathlessly. "I wanna do that," she said with a smile. "It's just that Emma was nice enough to let me borrow a shirt. I don't wanna rip it on her. She doesn't like my enough as it is," she said. He nodded as pulled lifted his upper body off of her: holding himself up with one arm on the side of the couch. He unbuttoned his shirt as fast as his fingers would allow: stripping it from his body.

She smiled as she started to unbutton the jacket: although at a much slower pace than necessary. She bite her bottom lip as she watched him watching her. He continued to move against her in a deliberately slow speed. She threw open the jacket coat and began to unbutton the shirt: top to bottom. She felt her bra unhook as he moved his free hand into her shirt and onto her breast.

Once she had finished he leaned back: letting her sit on his lap as she pulled the jacket, shirt, and bra off completely. She leaned down: her hand on his bare chest: bring her lips to his as his hands explored her body.

"I have a request," he muttered as his eyes made contact with hers. "Can we carry on with this," he said referring to the movements their both making with their lower regions, "just _without_ clothes?" he asked. Her face flushed heatedly before she nodded and the next thing she knew they were both on their feet. He kissed her again before lowering himself to the floor. He used his powers to undo her pants. She grasped at his head, holding him close to her. His hands were around her backside as he slid her pants and undergarment down her legs. She let out a soft moan as he kissed the inside of her leg and grabbed her butt. He placed light kisses on her skin on his way back up. Their lips met as her hand brushed against his belt.

"I will not stop you this time," he said huskily

"Good," she said as her hand seized his belt. As she took Max's belt off a voice in the back of her mind told her that this was still a bad idea: that there were still many reasons why she shouldn't go through with this. But somehow she managed to ignore the fact that he was still holding her family captive as she slid down his pants: a condom flying into his hands from across the room. Somehow she managed to disregard that this partnership of theirs was only temporary as Magneto sat her down on the couch: holding her legs wide apart warning her that it would hurt.

"But only for a moment, my love, I promise," he whispered before kissing her: her hands went to his cheeks holding his face to hers.

Somehow she was able to be completely indifferent to the voice of reason within her own mind as Magneto thrusted into her for first time, and the second…for the third…for the countless times that night.

And as she laid in Max's arms on his bed, they had somehow made it up the stairs to his bedroom during: the aftermath of what they done still resonated throughout her body: she knew that at that moment she knew that she had never been safer in her life than she was now lying in his hold.

Given everything that has happened to her throughout her life: she found that feeling safe was important to her. A little voice in the back of her mind reminded her that it was Magneto she should be afraid of: but as she glanced up at his face. She found that she wasn't anymore.

"I believe you," she whispered. He slowly opened his eyes as his hand cupped her face bring her closer to him for another kiss.

"About what?" he asked.

"Most- … All of it," she uttered.

"You trust me again?" he asked. She nodded before he smiled warmly down at her. "I will never betray that trust again, Anna," he promised.

"You better, fucking, not," she started to say: his expression became confused. "Or I swear to god, Max, I _silent treatment_ your ass into the ground," she warned.

"Did you just threaten me wit-" he started to ask in disbelief with a chuckle.

"Hell, yeah," she smirked. "And you know I can do it too… for hours, days maybe," she teased.

"Anna, I don't think either of us truly desire to found out just how long you can stand to not utter a single word or thought," he said.

"So, you better not piss me off then" she said with a smile. He smiled down at her as his eye lite up with pride.

"What am I going to do with you?" he asked.

"I can think of a few things," she said with a smirk.

"Can you now?" he asked wonderfully intrigued by her statement.

"Yeah," she said before she gave him a quick peck on the lips. 'It's almost three o'clock in the morning," she said as she lowered herself her head to rest on his chest: her eyes blissfully closing, "we should sleep together," she said with a grin.

He laughed loudly before kissing the top of her head.

And Rogue found that despite everything, perhaps even because of some of it, somehow… as ludicrous as it may seem… somehow she was actually happy. Happy to be precisely where she was: happy to be his company.

_'But at what cost?' _

* * *

So, that's it for this chapter. I have no idea when the next one is going to come out. I'm going to try and write one more chapter before my cousin goes back to school. Maybe ask my other cousin if I can use his desktop while he's not home. I'm gonna try like crazy!

Thank you to everyone who is putting up with my bad updating and still reading the story! I really do appreciate it!

I hope you all enjoyed this chapter. I am apologizing to everyone who voted! Because at the end of the day this chapter became a mix of A and B. Rogue heard the explanation in third person-i-ness was highlighting the best parts of their conversation: keeping it interesting. I know that most people voted B, and Rogue did start to think about her plan. But then as I was about to get to more strategizing well… surprise sex scene! … Honestly, sometimes this fic just writes its self. It's weird.

Please let me know what you thought.

* * *

Speaking of which

Review time!

Deathstroke'sDaughter: Thanks for voting on all the questions! I'm glad you think that the name calling is funny! There's going to be more of that! I hope that you enjoyed the chapter! Please let me know what you thought? I hope to hear from you again.

Supreme Tactical Bias: Yeah, I would get the world's most awesome cookie! Thanks for voting and everything that you wrote! Really! It made my day! Oh, and if you ever find a story that has a similar plot to mine would you please consider leaving a review with the details? Not that your searching for one… just that I would love to read anything you might suggest. Again thank you for all the kind words. I hope to hear from you again. Thank you!

P.S. I love you user name! :)

Raven34link: Thanks for voting! And for leaving like a million reviews within two weeks! That was awesome! Oh, and just too let you know, Rogue didn't get to eat but Magneto did! He had lobster while he waited for Betsy Braddock to get to the Crescent Beach Club. It was about an hour wait. Thanks for every review you have ever left! Seriously awesome! I hope to hear from you again.

Gah: Yay, input! 1) Awesome! 2) I agreed, she really is crass! 3) Thanks! 4)Thank for your insight! What I came up with for the first half of the chapter was taken from your words. Thanks for the good ideas! Throughout the conversation, and facts I kept in mind what you wrote about inserting fun. Thanks for the voting and I'm glad that you're enjoying the fic. I hope that you like this chapter too! Please let me know? I hope to hear from you again!

Alienarcher326: I'm so sorry I took so long! I hope it was worth the wait! Thanks for the review! I hope to hear you again.

Nikki: Thanks for voting! I love your idea for the name calling! I am so going to use it in the next chapter (or knowing my pace of writing) or within the next ten chapters! But I am going to use. I love the idea of Blindspot calling her commander, while Pyro insists she a commodore because Magneto used the title once. :) Thanks for that. It's going to make a great scene, and probably a running gag whenever Pyro's the fic! I hope to hear from you again!

LadyNorth: Thanks for voting! Sorry, I suck at listening to what people choose! And yeah, last chapter I should have reread it about five more times before posting it, but I working on borrowed time and laptop so I make due with what I had. I believe that there are much less mistakes in this chapter than 25. Free feel to inform me if I'm wrong! Thanks, as usual, for reading and reviewing! I hope that you loved this chapter and I hope to hear from you again?

Warrioroftheseventhstar:

"ERIC EXPLAINED! Wow! So when you were writing that did you have to pry his lips open or what?"

Pretty much! I had to rewrite it a few times to make sure he answered each question she asked. When through I think five times before I was satisfied with his level of answering! Thanks for writing that, by the way! I smile every time I read it! I glad that were cool with the Shan situation. To be honest I do eventually want to write out all the beginning story of the characters in this fic. I have most of Betsy's Emma's and now Shan's written in my head. But I figure I should spend some more time on the fic itself, rather than all these side projects. So, it'll have to wait.

Sorry about the voting…how I didn't really listen to people… I hope you liked it anyway! Please let me know what you think? I'll see what I can do about the Maxxy comment! Thanks for the suggestion! I hope to hear from you again.

Meow114: Thanks for voting! Sorry you had to wait so long! I hope it was worth the wait! Let me know? It's going to be a while but Rogue will eventually gain over another's mutants powers…but oh boy is it going to be a while before we get to that. Thanks for the review! I hope to hear from you again!

Thanks to everyone who put my on story alert and their favorite story lists!

AND THANK YOU TO EVERYONE WHO IS READING THIS LINE! YOU ARE AWESOME!


	28. Chapter 27

I have a new netbook computer! Yay! ^.^ Please enjoy the first of many new chapters to come!

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Rogue lazily opened her eyes as she started to wake up. She found herself pressed up against Magneto's nude body: both of them covered by a warm white comforter. Slowly the events of the night before came back to her as she continued to wake up. It didn't take long before she felt the urge to jump out of the bed: it took all her will power to control herself.

'_What the fuck was I thinking?' _she asked herself, bewildered by her behavior, as she carefully inched away from Magneto's body. _''I cannot believe that I let myself do that with him…,' _she thought disgusted once she was no longer touching Max in any way.

"Anna?" Magneto asked as he started to stir.

'_Shit,'_ she thought to herself in anger as she turned away from him. She was not ready for him to be awake. She was not ready to deal with him. Maybe if she just pretended to be asleep he would leave her alone for a little while longer.

"Good morning," he said from behind her: she could hear the smile in his voice. She felt his hand in her hair. Before she could stop herself she moved another inch away from him swiftly; as though his touch would burn her. "Are you alright?" he asked. She could feel him moving on the bed; closer to her. Couldn't he take a hint?

"No," she replied bluntly as she got out of the bed. She realized instantly that she was still nude, and ran across the room to his dresser. Turning her back to him she pulled out one of his white button down shirts and put it on; she buttoned it quickly.

"Anna?" Magneto asked. She glanced up at the mirror on Magneto's dresser. She could clearly see Max sitting up on the bed behind her. Their eyes made contact through the mirror. He studied her facial expression for a moment as she unintentionally held her breath. "Regrets?" he asked.

"Yeah," she said with a nod.

"I am sorry that you feel that way. You understand, of course, that you did nothing wrong," he said before he threw the cover off of himself and stood up. Her eyes lingered over his nudity for a brief second before she opened the top draw of his dresser and grabbed a pair of boxers. "There was nothing immoral about what we did together," he said.

"Put those on," she said as she turned and threw the boxers at him. He caught them and did as she asked.

"Better?" he asked.

"Yeah," she nodded, "thanks," she muttered as she hugged herself.

"You're welcome," he said as he started to walk up to her. She felt the urge to move; to flee from him; but there was a look in his eyes that compelled her to remain still. "Anna, I cannot express one fact strongly enough," he said as he crossed the room. She felt extremely vulnerable standing there with nothing but a flimsy cotton shirt between Magneto and her bare skin; and for some reason that vulnerability brought a flush of color to her cheeks.

'_What is wrong with me?'_ she asked herself as Magneto moved in front of her; pressing himself against her body slightly; trapping her between him and the dresser.

"You haven't done anything that would warrant feelings of guilt or shame," he stressed as he caressed her arms.

"Then why do I feel like this?" she asked.

"These feelings will pass, I promise," he said instead of answering her question. He leaned in and kissed her forehead.

"What if I don't want them to go away?" she asked quietly.

"What we did can never be undone, my girl" he whispered in her ear before he placed a light kiss on her neck. She felt a sharp shiver run down her back; she felt like a deer in the headlights.

"Only repeated," she muttered.

"I should hope so," he smiled against her neck as his hands moved to her hips. She gasped as he lifted her up to sit on the dresser. He slid his hand under the shirt; his fingers were slowly moving against her thigh. She felt his thumb press against her other thigh trying to pry them apart. She moved her hands to his arms.

"Stop," she exclaimed; her eyes closing. Thankfully, Magneto's fingers ceased their movements. She felt dizzy; like her head was spinning. She tilted forward leaning her head against Max's chest; waiting for the uneasy sensation to end.

A moment passed and she felt his hand in her hair massaging her scalp. She sighed; the massage was instantly relaxing. At least it was until she felt him kiss the top of her head.

"I said stop," she shouted as she took her head off of him. She closed her eyes letting the tears that had begun to form in her eyes run down her face. Couldn't they have just one conversation where he didn't try to seduce her?

"I keep asking myself 'what is wrong with me?'" she said.

"Nothi-"

"Because," she shouted. "I let you touch me and I-… and I like it… despite all these other feelings I have for you… But I don't think I'm asking the right question, Max," she said as she opened her eyes to glare at him.

"_God_, what's the first thing ya do after I tell ya that I regretted having sex with you?" she asked as tears ran down her face. "You try to get me to do it again," she bellowed. "I- I know what question I should be asking," she said bitterly. "What the fuck is wrong with _you_?" she shrieked.

"Anna," he started to say as he tried to place his hand on her arm.

"Don't touch me," she screamed as she pulled her arm away. She jumped off of the dresser and ran towards the door. She attempted to open it but he would not let the doorknob turn. Panic and rage consumed her. "Let me out," she screamed as she banged her fist against the door. "Let me out. Let me out. Let me out," she continued to scream; she could feel her throat become hoarse from her screeching.

And then she felt nothing…

* * *

Magneto watched Rogue scream, and thrash at the door for a few moments before he came to a decision. He reached his hand out calling on the iron running through her veins. He manipulated the trace amounts of iron in her blood causing her to lose conscious. He ran over to the girl as she fell unconscious; catching her. He gently lowered her to the ground.

'_I pushed her too hard. Expected her to handle too much… Damn it,_' he though in anger. _'And now what?'_ he asked himself frustrated as he lifted her up. _'I still have her trust… that is the most important aspect of our relationship and I do still possess it,' _he thought as he carried her over to the bed.

'_I must focus on the emergence now,' _he thought as he laid her down on the bed.

'_Working on the strategy, it should help her to find some sense of normalcy in our situation.'_ He sighed. _'Yes, she will become more comfortable working towards returning to the institute… away from me,'_ he lamented.

He stared down at his girl for a moment. His shirt barely covered any of her skin. Seeing her wearing it only made him want to rip it off of her and take her once again. He took a deep breath.

'_I am not that type of monster,'_ he told himself before he reached down for the blanket to cover her body. He took another deep breath as he ran his hand through his hair. _'I need another cold shower,'_ he thought annoyed. _'And here I thought I was finally finished with those. I suppose that is what I deserve for being _optimistic_,'_ he thought as he made his way out of the room.

* * *

Rogue slowly opened her eyes and found that she was laying on the living room couch. She felt warm; she was wearing Magneto's red bath robe. It covered her completely. She glanced around as she began to fully wake up.

Max was sitting across from her in one of his arm chairs. He was fully clothed in his usual attire: white shirt, black pants. She noticed his hair was wet. He was leaning forward, his elbows resting on his thighs, his hands folded in front of him as he stared down at her. A coffee table was all that stood between them.

Her eyes immediately locked with his.

"If I wasn't-" she paused for a moment her voice still sounded hoarse.

"Anna," he said softly as he pointed to the tall glass of ice water on the table in front of her. She sat up: making sure to keep his robe closed. She leaned forward and took a much needed sip of water.

"Thanks," she said again.

"You're welcome," he replied again. She took another few sips until her throat didn't feel as sore as it had. She finished the glass before placing it back on the table. "Would you like more?" he asked.

"No, thank you," she muttered.

"What were you going to say?" he asked

"…If I wasn't still a captive than you would've let me leave the room and be angry at you for a while. But that's not what you did," she said her body was begin to shake; she suddenly felt like she was about to start crying again, or that she needed to break something. He stared back at her. "You ain't gonna deny it?" she asked.

"Why should I deny the truth?" he asked. Her eyes closed at his statement: tears running down her face. She was so tired of crying all the time. She just wanted…

"I am sor-"

"Don't apologize again," she yelled cutting his statement short. She took a deep breath: attempting to calm down. She didn't want him putting her to sleep again. "We both know what an apology from you is worth…"

"An-"

"I want you to promise to stop trying to seduce me," she said. She saw a look anger cross his face. She internally cringed at his expression. She took a deep breath. "I'm not saying that you can't touch me at all," she said tentatively. "Your arm around my shoulder or back… I don't mind. I actually really like it. It's just-" she paused for a moment as she looked away from him.

* * *

"Anna?" Magneto asked again. _'It's moments like these when I regret severing the link that allowed me to read your mind,'_ he thought. After a long moment she glanced back at him.

"Did- did you bring anything of mine here? Ya know, clothes?" she asked. He attempted to hide how surprise he was by the question.

"Everything you own is here," he told her without thinking. He watched her revolted expression: tears forming in the corners of her eyes. "We are going to destroy the institute in only a few days. I had your belongings brought here to save them from destruction," he explained smoothly.

He had ordered his teleportor, Amelia Voght, to transport all of Rogue belongings to this house while Rogue was in the shower the night before. Of course his girl never needed to know that he had made up his mind to relocate her and her belongings hours before he promised he would. The last thing he wanted was to drive her into yet another emotional tantrum.

"Oh… thanks. That was sweet of you… in a creepy way," she added. He smiled at that. "Where?" she asked.

"The second largest bedroom upstairs," he answered. She nodded.

"I'll be back in a few minutes," she said as she stood up.

"Anna," he started to say as he stood up.

"Max, please," she said. "I need a few minutes. I woke up this morning-"

"Afternoon," he corrected.

"Whatever," she said dismissively. "You really think I give a shit what time it was?" she asked. He couldn't help but smirk.

'_It's nearly three now,'_ he thought to himself as he gave the clock a quick glance.

"I woke up this morning," she repeated without waiting for him to answer.

'_Three?'_ he thought to himself vexed. _'Damn it,'_ he thought.

"And I didn't have time to think or anyt-" she started to say.

"Rogue," he said interrupting her. "We are postponing the emergence," he said.

"No, shit," she said.

"But I have yet to give any orders to postpone," he explained.

"What?" she exclaimed. "How could you forget something like that?" she yelled.

"I've been _preoccupied_," he retorted.

"Where is your phone?" she asked; her voice still elevated.

'…_Where _is_ my phone?' _he asked. _'I gave it to-' _he started to think.

"It's in your coat pocket," she answered for him.

"Thank you," he said used his abilities to take hold of the phone. _'That memory of your can be extremely useful at times,' _he thought as he used his powers to bring the device to him. "You need time to think; is that what you would attempting to say?" he asked.

"Yes," she snapped as she folded her arms across her chest. While wearing his oversized robe the gesture look utterly ridiculous. He chuckled. "Shouldn't you be making a phone call?" she asked annoyed.

"Yes, yes I should be. Go shower," he ordered. He watched her eyes narrow. "If you would like to," he added to appease her. "Think. Make sense of your request while I handle this situation. We will talk after we have both completed our tasks," he finished. She nodded. He noticed her glance at the clock

"Three- thirty-two, huh? Was anything supposed to happen by now?" she asked as their eyes made contact. The importance of the situation evidently was causing her to put aside their personal issues.

'_I should start staging little emergences ever time you become aggravated with me,' _he thought amused as he went into his contacts. "Mystique should have joins the x-men and the brotherhood-"

"Into one team," she finished thoughtfully. He gazed up at her from his phone; he could practically see the wheels turning in her mind. "Have them keep running danger room sessions," she said as she looked at him again. He was caught off guard by the order. "The emergence ain't gonna happen until Jean locates Logan, right? If she's too busy being in or supervising sessions then nothing else happens yet. Problem solved" she elucidated.

'_I hope, Anna, that your strategic abilities will never fail to impress me,_' he thought with a smirk as he dialed Elisabeth Braddock's number.

"Call Jason Wyngarge first," Rogue exclaimed.

"Why?" he asked as he the phone ring in his ear.

"_Logan_," she said insistently. "He's supposed to fight the sentinel as soon as the fanatics wake him up. If you don't postpone that first than he's gonna spend the next few hours _destroying_ Trask's only working sentinel," she explained panicked.

'_The emergence will have to be postponed until another sentinel is functional,'_ he realized.

"Sir?" Magneto heard Elisabeth Braddock ask. He hung up the phone and speedily selected Jason Wyngarge's from his contacts.

"Hello?" One of Jason's daughter's asked. He was not sure which one it was; they both sounded alike to him.

"Ms. Wyngarge, put your father on the phone now," he commanded.

"It will just be a moment, sir," she replied.

"Max," Rogue said. He looked over at her. "I'm pretty sure that's everything we need to worry about. So, I'm gonna go shower," she informed him. "I'll see you in, like, a half hour," she said. He gave a quick nod.

It was as he watched her climb the staircase that he realized her commands were the only orders issued that he intended to follow since _'…1963-64?'_ he asked himself. He found, strangely enough, that he didn't mind.

* * *

Rogue glanced at herself in the mirror; brushing her newly dried hair a few more times before she was satisfied with its appearance. While she was showering she had finally figured out what it was about their latest sexual encounters that bothered her so much.

'_Now, I just have to explain it to him,'_ she thought with a sigh. She pulled at her black tank top; smoothing it out. Once again she considered putting on a long sleeve shirt. She shook her head at the thought. _'It ain't cold in here,'_ she told herself. _'Besides, you decided to trust him, remember? Well, what choice do I really have?' _she asked herself resentfully. She let out another sigh before rolling her eyes._ 'If I can trust him with my life then I should be able to trust him with this too... right?' _she asked herself uncertain of the answer.

"Here goes everything," she muttered as she exited the bathroom.

* * *

"Max," he heard Rogue calling his name. "Max!" He marveled for a moment at how quickly he had become accustomed to be addressed by his given name.

"I'm in the kitchen," he called out from where he was standing. He was currently standing in front of the one of the counters putting the finishing touches on their lunch.

"What?" Rogue called out. He used his powers to open the door.

"Kitchen," he shouted before turning back to his preparations. A few moments later he heard footsteps behind him.

"Your house is way too big," she said. "A girl could get lost trying to find her way." He smiled.

"It's more plausible that _I'll_ lose my way in this house before you will," he pointed out. Although he had altered his fragment's memories; her recall of the structure of his house was still accurate. Even though this was her first time in Jericho she knew his home better than he did.

"That's only cause I have a mental genetic advantage over you," she said. He chuckled.

"_Mental genetic advantage_," he quoted. "I'm going to have to remember that one," he said with a smile.

"You should write it down," she teased. He laughed as out of the corner of his eye he watch her walk cross the kitchen. "Sandwiches?" she asked with a smile as she walked up to him.

"Hungry?" he asked. He wasn't sure where this change in her attitude had come from but he was greatly enjoying it.

"I'm starving," she exclaimed. "Which one's mine?" she asked before licking her lips.

"The one without tomato," he said before handing her one of the plates.

"Thanks," she said as she walked over to the table with her plate.

"Please, help yourself to the iced tea," he said as he came to the table. He had already placed the pitcher and glasses filled with ice on the table; all he had yet to do was pour. He watched her take her first bite. A soft smile graced her face. He took hold of the pitcher and poured them both some iced tea. He watched her peer up at him.

"How'd the phone calls go? Everything okay?" she asked before taking her second bite.

"Everyone is under control," he informed her. He watched her facial expression; attempting to gauge her emotional response to his answer. She blinked and took another bite of her sandwich. He then took his first bite. _'What is going on in that head of yours, Anna?' _he asked.

They proceeded to eat in silence. It wasn't an uneasy silence.

'_On the contrary, it's been rather comfortable. Much like the latter half of our car ride was yesterday,' _he thought as he took his last bite. He watched her stand up; bringing her plate and glass to the sink. He was surprised when she turned on the water and picked up the sponge. "You do not have to do that," he told her as he stood up.

"They ain't gonna wash themselves," she replied. He brought his plate and glass to the sink.

"You're an excellent house guest. Thank you," he said with a smile.

"We both know I ain't a _guest_," she said as she dropped both the objects she holding back into the sink. Was that bitterness he heard in her tone?

"Anna?" he asked concerned as he placed his hand on her shoulder. He was shocked when she turned and hugged him. "Are you alright?" he asked as he returned the hug. She titled her head up to gaze at him.

"We need to talk. I wanted to the moment I came downstairs, but you made food so I waited," she explained.

"We could have eaten after that conversation. All you would have had to do was ask," he said soothingly.

"I was hungry too," she said with a smile. "Let's go in the living room, okay?" she asked. He nodded before following her into that room. "Would you sit on the couch, please?" she asked. It was simple request he not mind following.

She surprised him yet again when she moved to straddle his lap. Putting her arms around his neck; she pulled herself closer to his as she kissed him.

'_An interesting conversational starter,'_ he thought lustfully as he placed one of his hands on her back, and his other in her hair. Her body felt so tense against his.

After a moment she broke the kiss. As she pulled back slightly he could see her flushed face.

"Do you know why I did that? Do ya understand why I'm sitting on your lap right now?" she asked.

"No, my girl, I haven't the slightest inkling," he replied honestly.

"To prove an ideological point," she said reusing his words. He smiled.

"I'm listening," he said.

"Do you know why I was sitting on your lap in your office yesterday?" she asked. He raised an eyebrow. "Because you pulled me onto your lap and you wouldn't let me get up" she said. "Do you know why I was on your lap in my bedroom? That day everyone was playing baseball. Both times?"

"Because I forced you to sit there and I would not allow you to stand," he answered.

"In the café?" she asked.

"The same reason," he answered.

"Now?" she asked.

"I do not know," he said.

"Because I'm _choosing_ to. I ain't being forced or manipulated into something I'm not sure I want to do. I want to touch you. That's why I'm doing this but- … I do get it. I can't leave this house until you let me but- … Max, what's your definition of rape?" she asked. He took a deep breath.

'_This should be interesting,'_ he thought. "Do you have one?" he asked. She nodded. "Then I would like to hear it," he said.

"…Forced intimacy," she said.

'_Taking the only action I am truly against and redefining it to suit your needs; that's my girl,'_ he thought impressed as he leaned in and kissed her again.

"I know that you can keep me here as long as you want. I know that you control_ everything_; that you _can_ control me. But whatever it is that _this_ is between us; it won't work if you control me too," she said.

"You are referring to our physical contact?" he asked.

"I'm referring to anything _intimate_ between us," she said. "When it comes to that I can't feel _threatened_. Like you're gonna get mad at me if I say no. If this is _ever_ gonna work we have to have different _rules_ for this. Please tell me you understand that," she said; he could hear the desperation in her voice.

"Yes, of course, I do," he told her. He could instantly see the relief on her face. Her body relaxed somewhat against his; some of her tension had dissipated. "When it comes to this we must be equals," he surmised.

"Are you okay with that?" she asked.

'_If you were not returning to the institute; if you were willing to remain by my side; then yes, I would be,_' he thought to her future self. _'We would be equals in every sense. I would have no qualms with having a partner.' _

"Max?" she asked.

"Alright, I give you my word that I will not attempt to seduce you. I will not touch you in an overtly sexual matter unless you _clearly_ initiate such an interaction," he said.

"That's not what I meant," she said. He looked at her dubiously. "You can initiate these things too. You can pull me onto your lap, but if I try to get up or I say not now you have to listen and not get angry at me for not wanting to touch you. It's works both ways. If I'm sitting on you and you get a phone call or something and you ask me to get up I have to get up," she said.

"Neither of us should feel forced into a sexual encounter," he conclusion.

"Or while talking, if I need a break from you," she started to say; he felt a surge of anger at her statement. "Like that," she said as she stood up off of him. "I say one thing that you don't like and you look like you want to kill me. If our relationship is gonna work than I can't be afraid of you," she said.

That brought a question to mind.

"Do you want our relationship to be successful?" he asked.

"I don't- …I don't know," she said as she turned to look down at him. "But you do?" she asked.

'_Of course I do,' _he thought to himself. "I believe I have made my feeling for you painfully evident."

"Well, that's what matters," she said with a shrug.

'_Fair enough,'_ he thought.

"…We really don't have time to go this a million times. You know what we should both be thinking about," she said as she sat down next to him.

"The emergence," he finished. She nodded as she glanced up at him. He moved his hand to her cheek before he kissed her. "We will talk more about us in a few days then," he said.

"Okay," she said. He smiled at her. He was not displeased with this development.

"Let's get to work," he said.

* * *

So that's it for this chapter. I hope you all enjoyed this chapter. Please review! Pretty pretty please! It's been four months since I updated and considering how much time I spend obsessing over this fic (I spent the last week working relentlessly on the fic. I have over ten pages in drafts) I want to know if people are still reading and enjoying it. So, please review!

Just a quick, "I still care about it! Please keep writing," or even "hi," would be GREATLY appreciated!

Meow114: It's all part of a much larger strategy, I promise! I'm with you; I would control from the shadows (which is in a way is what he is doing) but when I decided to make this fic super long I also decided to work within the parameters of the show. So, I had to plan Magneto's larger strategy around the events of the show: him revealing mutants to the world, Wanda hating him, Apocalypse, etc.

Anyway! Here's the new chapter. I hope that you enjoyed it! Sorry, it took me so long! I finally have a computer of my own again so I'll be able to update more frequently. I really hope to hear from you again. ^.^

Raven34link: ^.^ Thanks for the review! Here's hoping they do it again!

Lady Avotil: Thank you! I hope you will find all the answers you seek from my fic in the months and chapters to come!

BasiaM82: Thank you! There's nothing an author loves more than being told they're good at writing their OTP! I really hope that you've enjoyed this new chapter! I hope to get another review from you ^.^

Inked Phoenix: Here is MORE! Thanks for the review! I hope you've enjoyed the new chapter

Lost O'Fallen Girl: Yes, I'm continuing it! Wow… you read it all in one day; Operation Repartee too? Either way that's a lot of time to spend with your eyes glued to the computer monitor! I'm glad that you're enjoying it and I hope to hear from you again ^.^

Thank you to everyone who is reading!


	29. Chapter 28

Although I now own a computer and have had some time to work on it: writing this chapter proved to be much more difficult than anticipated. Originally, I had planned to have Rogue and Magneto plan out the entirety of the new strategy step by step; explaining everything that was going to happen: while vaguely implying the repercussions of Rogue's involvement with Magneto and her effort on him. I have been planning this chapter in my head for several months now (since chapter 22).

You would think that given that much effort into the thought process of Magneto and Rogue's brain storming session I would have been able to simply sit down in front of my computer, write out the dialog, and insert some insults and clever retorts for good measure.

But over the months a very strange thing happened. My understanding of the events in question became so internally constructed that recalling the steps from point A to point Q became… lost in translation. Honestly, I don't remember how much of the plan was Rogue's or Magneto's idea. At one point in time I did: the conversation between them did happen. Unfortunately, I was at work at the time and was unable to take notes. And I've found the effort to reconstruct that though process to be mentally exhausting and in all honestly a little bit boarding.

Nevertheless, I spend nearly a month trying to work up the resolve to sit down and write out that thought process but that endeavor began to feel like a chore. I complete too many chores in my home-life and in order to receive a paycheck for this part of my life to become one. So, I've decided to stop trying to make myself write the chapter in that fashion.

Meaning that we are going to pick up the story from here…

(Also, quick note: Since flashbacks and character's thoughts are happening too close together again: **Flashbacks are in BOLD for this chapter.**)

* * *

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Twenty-Eight

"We should go over it one more time," Magneto said. Rogue let out a sigh from where she was laying on the living room couch. She glanced up at him; he was still pacing around the room. She was wondering when the floor would start to show signs of erosion from his ten foot route.

"We've been over it twenty-eight times, Max. And we haven't even changed anything big since the sixteenth round," she said. "We both know this plan like the back of my hand," she said as he look down at her. "And it's a _good_ strategy, Max," she said as they made eye contact. "You just have to give the orders." They stared at each other for a few moments.

"…I am still wary of the details of the aftermath," he uttered as he broke eye contact. She sighed as her eyes lingered over the small stack of papers on the coffee table. She had written out each and every step of their plan; more for Magneto's sake than her own. There was far too much depending on this plan. The smallest error could ruin everything; which is why she'd had to rewrite the strategy over ten times as they had altered it.

However, it had been almost three hours since she had even touched the papers. They were ready.

"I'm sorry I want a high school diploma," she muttered annoyed.

"It's not that, Anna. _Of course_, you should want to graduate high school. You should aspire for a college education. I can easily see you obtaining several doctorates," he said as he walked over to the couch. She couldn't help but smile: no one had ever had this much faith in her ability to success. She drew up her knees to give him room to sit.

"Thank you," he said as he sat down. "My concerns lay with continuing this facade with Wanda," he said as turned to look at her: resting his arm on top of her knees. "I am supposedly going to have an extremely powerful young mutant- My own daughter, attempting to kill me. I'm sure you understand how unsettling that is," he finished.

"You're the one who decided to abandon her in a _mental institution_," she said rolling her eyes.

"How else was I supposed to explain her complete absence from my life?" he asked.

"Boarding school " she suggested. Magneto raised an eyebrow.

"And why did I not send Pietro to this boarding school?" he asked.

"I don't know," she exclaimed irate. They had been plotting for over ten hours straight. She was exhausted from their continuous scheming. Sleep; she desperately wanted sleep. But it was Thursday; their last night to strategize. She couldn't do anything until he was content with their plan. "…All I'm saying is ya could've abandoned her in a _nicer _way," she said closing her eyes.

"It fit in well enough with my original intentions for Bayville. Instead it will become an inconvenience. We will have to address that issue when the times comes," he said.

"But not tonight?" she asked.

"No, not tonight," he answered.

"Then why are we still sitting here?" she asked opening her eyes. "It's almost eight. Your people need time to get everything ready," she said.

"I know," he said.

"Then why are we still talking about it?" she asked. "Why are we still talking about _any_ of it?" she asked. She stared up at him: waiting for him to respond.

"…Alright," he said as he removed his arm from her atop her knees. "Alright, we're done," he said.

"Finally," she said; a wave of relief washed over her as she sat up.

"You should go get some sleep. We have a long weekend ahead of us," Magneto said.

"You don't have at tell me twice," she said as they both stood up. She started to head for the stairs as he started to walk towards the opposite door: no doubt heading towards his study. "Max," she said quickly.

"Yes?" he asked as he turned back to look at her.

"You should take those," she pointed to the small stack of papers on the coffee table.

"What happened to we know this plan like the back of your hand?" he asked.

"I usually wear gloves," she pointed out with a shrug. He chuckled softly. "Use the cheat-sheet," she ordered with a small smile. "Please," she said.

"Yes, commodore," he said as he picked up the stack. She rolled her eyes. This was the third time he had called her that.

"We ain't going anywhere near a boat," she muttered.

"I believe that is why I'm fond of the title," he said with a smirk. "All jesting aside, Anna, you did remarkably well with this," he said as he held up the papers, "I would not have been able to accomplish this without you; not in this brief amount of time. You have a very promising career in politics ahead of you." he said. "If that is where you decide to place your ambitions," he added.

"Which party would my ideology fall into?" she asked laughing.

"Democrats, most likely, on the far left of the spectrum. But you do not necessary need to be apart of the _United State's _politically system," he said. She started at him confused. "It's just an option for you to consider," he said before turning away from her. She opened her mouth to ask a question but stopped herself; she really didn't want to start another conversation with him. Instead she just watched him walk towards the exit. "See you tomorrow afternoon, Anna," he said as he walked through the door.

"Good night, Max" she said quietly as she watched him leave the room. She took a deep breath._ 'Girl, you need sleep…just go to sleep,' _she thought.

After another deep breath she did just that.

* * *

Magneto shut the door to his bedroom as he headed out into the hall. After a full nights rest he was now ready to enact the plan that he and Rogue had spent so many hours perfecting.

_'Speaking of the girl,'_ he thought to himself as he stopped in front of her room. He silently opened the door and peeked in. A smile graced his face as he watched his girl asleep on her bed. Throughout their plotting he had come to the conclusion that there was no legitimate reason for Rogue to be present for most it. She had argued with him for almost an hour on the subject.

"_**Won't someone notice I ain't there?" she had asked. **_

"_**Have they ever taken notice of your absences before?" he asked. **_

He recalled her shocked expression when he informed her that he had one of his people, Joanna Cargrill, armed with an imagine inducer, had been and would be masquerading as her.

_**'Really, Anna, after everything I have revealed these past few weeks you are still capable of being shocked?' he had asked her. She had only glared in response before conceding the issue. **_

If he was being honest with himself there was only one real reason he wanted to keep her away from the others.

_'Isolation,'_ he thought to himself. He had been her only human contact for a little over three days now. He did not know how she was going to react once he allowed her to be among her family again. Lately, she had been prone to outbursts of rage and crying fits.

_'Her emotional tantrums are- ...understandable given everything I've forced her to endure. They're an acceptable stress releases... when the two of us are alone. But once we are among others- I can not enact this plan while worrying about the manifestations of her emotions...,' _he thought.

"Max?" he heard her call out; drawing him out of his thoughts. He glanced down at her as he entered the room further. She looked terrified. "Is everything okay?" she asked panicked as she sat up.

"Everything is fine, Anna," he said calmly as he took a seat on the bed in front of her. He placed his hand on her cheek: his thumb rubbing softly as he attempted to consoled her.

"Ain't you supposed to be leaving by now?" she asked as she placed her hand on his arm; her other on his chest.

"Shh," he hushed before he leaned in and kissed her. _'She knows I am not supposed to be here. This slight deviation is causing her this much dismay?'_ he asked himself as he pulled back. "I only came in to check on you before I left. I didn't mean to wake you. You have my apologizes," he said. "Everything is fine," he repeated tenderly before he kissed her forehead. He listened to her breathing begin to regulate itself.

She was on the verge of a breakdown. There was no denying that. For the last couple of days their planning had kept her occupied. He had been so proud of her; the way she had handled all the stress.

_'Perhaps,_ _it would be better if she just slept until I needed her... Actually, I do not need her to absorb Juggernaut. I could always have Cargrill figh-'_

* * *

"Max?" Rogue asked. She watched him pull back until her eyes made contact with his."You're gonna be late," she pointed out.

She was not expecting to wake up to him. For once she though she would have some time to herself. But then, of course, he had to check on her. It was- If he wouldn't let her near her family than she really just wanted to be alone for a while.

"I have time," he told her as he placed his free hand on her her shoulder.

"No, you don't," she said. "You should-"

"_You_ have completed your end of our deal. Now, you must trust _me_ to execute that plan," he said.

"Until tomorrow when I rejoin the X-Men," she said slowly.

"I've had some second thoughts about that," he said. Rogue felt her heart skip a beat. What was he going to change now? "Cargrill could easily fight Juggernaut in your place; their powers are similar enough. No one would question it," he said.

"Why should that matter? That's not what we agreed on," she said.

"I kno-"

"At this point, Max, we can't afford to change anything. If something goes wrong- If one little thing goes wrong this whole thing could blow up in our faces. You can't let that happen," she said. Was he trying to drive her insane? She just wanted to go home to her brother. But he kept delaying that. "Max, why are you doing this to me?" she asked: silent tears running down her face.

"Because of this," he said as he gently rubbed a tear from her cheek with his thumb. "Emotionally, Anna, I am uncertain if you can handle the responsibilities we assigned you. I know without a doubt that Cargrill can. As a strategist, Anna, whom would you employ to complete our tasks: you or Cargrill?" he asked. She turned her gaze away from his before she took a deep breath.

"...Cargrill," she admitted in a whisper. "I would trust Cargrill over me," she said more tears escape from her eyes confirming his concerns. "...Then what am I supposed to do? I'm gonna go crazy if I just sit here and do nothing for two days," she said as she looked back up at him.

"I do not require you to be conscious for this. You could sleep through it," he told her. She sucked in a breath. "I've had you sleep through my events before.," he said.

She couldn't argue with that. He'd had her unconscious for most of last Saturday and Sunday. Tuesday he had knocked her unconscious as well. Not for nearly as long; but she knew that he could do it again at a moments notice.

"You need rest, Anna. You've slept for over nine hours and still you have bags under your eyes," he told her.

"Do I?" she asked softly. He nodded.

"Clearly, you are still exhausted. I have caused you so much anxiety over the past few weeks. Allow me to spare you this weekend. Lay back and close your eyes, Anna," he said as he gently pressed on her shoulder; pushing her back onto the bed. "I will implement our plan as we have agreed. You have my word," he promised.

"I don't know, Max," she muttered as she allowed her arms to rest on the bed.._ 'I did say I was gonna trust him, didn't I?'_ she reminded herself.

"Have I broken a promise to you thus-far?" he asked.

"...No," she answered.

"Do I have any reason to start today?" he asked.

"None that I know about," she said.

"There is no reason," he told her with a smile. "Nothing has changed between us since Tuesday," he said. "Correct?" he asked.

"No, no, nothing's changed. We still need to talk about us," she pointed out.

"And we shall once the emergence has past," he said. "Which for you, my girl, will happen much faster if you just close your eyes," he said with a smile. She reached her hand up and put it on his face. His hand soon covered hers as he leaned down and kissed her.

A few moments later he pulled back. Confusion fulled her as she reopened her eyes.

"Why am I still awake?" she asked. He grinned.

"In the past you have gotten very angry at me for taking advantage of that. I decided not to repeat the offense," he said. She felt herself smile. "Should I have?" he asked.

"No," she said quickly shaking her head.. "I'm really glad you didn't," she smiled. He returned the smile. There was that feeling again; contentment. She felt that way a lot when he smiled at her like that. Suddenly, she felt safe. It was- '_Wish I felt like this all the time,' _she thought to herself. She lifted her head off of the pillow and kissed him this time.

She heard him groan as she pulled away.

"I'm gonna close them now." she said. He nodded with a smile.

"I will be the first thing you see when you wake up," he told her.

"Okay," she said with a nod before closing her eyes.

"Rest well, my love," he said before placing his lips on her forehead.

The last thing she felt was the blanket covering her body and his lips leaving her forehead.

* * *

I know it's short, but I really wanted to get past season two already. So, I took a shortcut around the plot. If anyone has any questions about what happened during the emergence (who did what, etc,) please feel free to ask. I will answer them!

Please review!

Speaking of which...

Thanks you to everyone who is reading and reviewing! You all rock! It's late, like 1:02pm, and I don't feel like spending an hour responding to each of the reviews individually. I think I'm going to start responding to you all as I get them; rather than wait until I'm done writing the chapter to even think about my responses.

Well, except to people who choose not to sign in. I'll still respond at the end of the chapter to you. Gah and Nikki: Thanks!


	30. Chapter 29

Oh my god, two chapters in one week! What is going on? This is what happens when I finally have a job I like and have Wednesdays off. Actually, this is what happens when I don't wait for reviews and continue writing the fic about ten minutes after I've updated. I spent the last three days writing this and the events that will occur during Stuff of Villains and I've planned out what will happen after that episode. I'm really excited! I can't wait to get it all down for your viewing pleasure. With that said please enjoy this chapter! Thanks for reading! ^.^

* * *

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Twenty-Nine

Rogue smiled when she felt a hand upon her face.

"Hello, Anna," he said as he caressed her cheek.

"Hi, Max," she said as she slowly opened her eyes; once again he was seated on the bed next to her. He was wearing his usual attire: white shirt, black pants. "Is everything okay?" she asked.

"Everything and everyone is fine," he told her. "Mutants kind is known to the world, and as promised I did not destroy your family in the process," he said.

"Thank you," she said softly; she felt a herself completely relax; gratitude overcoming her "You don't know how much this means to me," she said.

"Yes, I do," he said before he kissed her forehead. Her eyes closed at the contact; she felt her face flush with color. "And your welcome. I'm overjoyed that I was able to achieve my goals without causing you that pain," he said as he pulled back; smiling down at her. "I drew you a bath," he said with a grin. She couldn't help but laugh.

"A bath?" she asked with a smile.

"Yes, I thought you could relax a while longer before I return you to your family," he said. She was beaming inside.

"That's happening today?" she asked.

"Later tonight," he said.

"Thank you," she said again. A little voice in the back of her mind attempted to remind her that he needed to return her only because he was the one who had kidnapped her in the first place; he was the one who had put her family in danger. She quickly pushed that voice back. _'Everything's okay,' _she thought to herself. She just wanted to hold onto that feeling for a long as she could.

"Your bath is going to get cold. I'll leave you to it, then?" he asked.

"I-" she started to say; first she was surprised that he had actually asked her if she wanted to be alone. Secondly; she felt her face flush all over again at the thought of him taking a bath with a her. And then her smile waned. "I ain't sure if I wanna be alone right now," she said as she looked back up at him.

"Anna, if you want me by your side then that is precisely where I shall be unless you decide otherwise," he said. She smiled.

"Okay," she said: feeling oddly in control of their interactions. If she asked him to leave he would: if she asked him to stay he would. "Thank you," she said again not sure what else to should say at the moment. He kissed her forehead again; as he took her hand in his.

"Shall we?" he asked. She nodded as he helped her to her feet. Linking her arm in his she allowed him to lead her out of the room, down the hallway and into the bathroom. She unbound her arm from his. "Would you like me to stay in the room?" he asked.

"Yes," she said. He smiled as he closed the bathroom door. "...But could you- … turn around for a minute? I mean, I know-" she started to explain.

"Of course, I can, Commodore," he said as he turned to face the door. "You are about to surround yourself with water. You can not tell me that title is not appropriate," he said: she could hear the smirk in his voice. She couldn't help but laugh as she undressed.

Once she was nude she placed one foot into the large white tub testing the water; it was a little hotter than she expected but not unpleasant. With a sigh she put her other foot into the tub before slowly submerging her body into her bubble bath. She inhaled deeply; breathing in the scent of the soap. It smelled like lavender. She loved lavender.

_'I wonder if he had some laying around or if he brought it for me,'_ she thought to herself. She glanced over at Magneto. He was still standing there with his arms behind his back waiting for permission to do something else. "You- …," she started to say but she faltered.

"Yes, Commodore?" he asked. She smiled at the title.

"You can turn around now," she said. He did so: their eyes making contact; he smiled at her.

"Where would you like me?" he asked. She took a deep breath as she gazed at him.

"Hm..."

"I would prefer to sit, if it does not offend you. The question is where?"

"You...you could move a little closer," she said. She felt her stomach do a back-flip as he smirked at her.

"Am I close enough now?" he asked after he had taken a step forward..

"No," she muttered.

"Closer then?" he asked. She nodded as he took another step forward. "Am I still too far away for your liken?" he asked.

"Yes," she answered. Her breathing increased dramatically as he stepped up to the tub.

"Is this what you meant?" he asked as he gazed down at her.

"Yes," she managed to say as she pressed her legs together. "You- you could sit if you wanted to," she offered.

"I think I will," he said as he knelled in front of the tub. He moved his hand forward; brushing some hair behind her ear. She flinched in the water; unintentionally getting his arm wet.

"Sorry," she quickly apologized. "I didn't mean to do that that," she said.

"It's alright, Anna, I do not mind a little water," he told her with a smile as he began to massage the side of her neck.

"Might ruin the shirt," she muttered knowing full well he didn't care whether it did or not.

"Do you think I should discard it?" he asked. Her widened eyes quickly met his. "Just to be safe?"he asked.

"That-" she started to say as she placed her hand on her chest. She could feel how rapid her heartbeat was. If it went any faster she was afraid it burst out of her chest.

"Yes?" he asked as he placed his other hand over hers; his thumb brushed against her nipple.. Her eyes closed as she gasped.

"Just to- just to be safe," she mumbled with a nod. She opened her eyes when his hands broke contact. She watched a grin spread across his face as he undid his top button.

"No other reason?" he asked with a smirk.

"No," she said quickly. "Yes," she admitted a second later. "...Max, you know exactly what you're doing to me," she accused. He chuckled loudly as he continued to unbutton his shirt.

"Yes, I do, Anna, _always,_" he said amused. "You can ask me to leave at any time. I will respect that. I will respect _you_," he said as he took off the garment, exposing his chest. He leaned forward placing his hand on her cheek drawing her closer to him. "I am going to kiss you now," he told her before he placed his lips on hers; she moaned into his mouth. He deepened the kiss as his free hand moved back to her breast; caressing her beneath the water.

Slowly, his hand descended her body until it slid it's way between her legs. Her hips jerked upwards as his finger touched her clitoris. He broke the kiss as he pushed two fingers into her.

"You can tell me to stop at any time," he told her as increased his finger's pace.

"I don't- I-I don't want you- y-you ta stop," she stuttered as she put her hand on his arm.

"I'm glad we agree," he said into her ear. "I have no desire to cease either," he said before he placed a kissed her cheek. She felt her body begin to sink further into the water. Magneto quickly wrapped an arm around her shoulders keeping her afloat. She was moaning wildly as she gave in the pleasure Max was giving her.

A few moments later she let out one last scream as he brought her over the edge. Her eyes fluttered opened and she looked up him. He smiled down at her before his lips met hers.

"May I join you?" he asked.

"The- the water's getting kinda cold," she said.

"My bedroom?" he asked. She nodded. He moved his arm beneath her legs and lifted her out of the water. She shivered from the chilled air; but her body still felt overheated. It was the strangest combination of hot and cold she had ever felt. "Almost there," he told her as the exited the bathroom. He quickly marched them into his room and put her on the bed. He drew the comforter over her body.

She curled up getting warm as she watched him remove the rest of his clothes. He walked over to the the nightstand and pulled out a condom. He sat down on the edge of the bed before turning to glance down at her.

"Should I put this on?" he asked gesturing to the condom. She smiled.

"I like this a lot better than what you doing to me before," she said.

"I am still manipulating you," he pointed out as he drew the covers off of her.

"I know," she said as she shivered from the cold. "But if I said no right now you would put that away," she said as she moved further back onto the bed.

"We have gotten this far before," he said as he leaned over her; he supported himself on his elbows "You have said no, and I have complied," he said

"I know. It's still different. It _feels_ different," she said as she looped her arms around his neck; pulling him closer.

"Do you approve of these alterations?" he asked before he bite her neck; she moaned.

"Said I did, didn't I?" she asked breathlessly. He chuckled.

"Is that a yes then?" he asked against her neck.

"Yes."

* * *

A few hours later Rogue exited the bathroom after taken a bath that actually got her clean. She made her way down the stairs and into the kitchen. Magneto was putting the finishing touches on their dinner. The smell of marinaded steak, and garlic fulled her senses.

"What's on the menu?" she asked.

"Have a seat, my girl, and you will soon find out," he said.

"Need any help with anything?" she asked as she headed to the table.

"No, thank you. I have all the preparations taken cared of," he said. She took a seat and surveyed the room for a moment before sighing.

_'You're gonna find out eventually. Might as well ask now,'_ she thought. "So, how much did I sleep through exactly?" she asked took hold of the glass of iced tea in front of her..

"Most of it. It's Thursday night," he said as he took hold of the their plates.

_'I was unconscious for a week,' _she realized as she took a sip "So, everyone back at the institute?" she asked softly.

"Yes," he said as he placed her plate in front of her.

"Thank you," she said referring to both the plate of string beans, masked potatoes, steak and the return of her family to the institute.

"Your welcome," he said with a smile as he took the seat across from her. "You requested that we have a conversation about the status of our future relationship," he said as his fork and knife floated into his hands. "Do you still wish to have it?" he asked.

"Yeah," she answered as she picked up her utensils.

"Where would you like to start?" he asked before he started to eat.

"What's gonna happen now?" she asked.

"What would you like to happen?" he asked.

"I don't-" she started to say.

"Let me rephrase that. In the future would you like to have sex?" he asked. She felt her face flush as she sucked in a breath. "I believe I can take that as a yes," he smiled. "But you have no intention of joining me or betraying your family," he said as she started to eat. "...again," he added. Her eyes narrowed as she glared at him.

"No, I don't," she snapped as she cut ferociously into her steak.

"There are still some issues that demand our attention. When the time comes I will call on you to address those issue. Whether, I require your assistants in planing or the execution of a plan; if it involves Bayville and the preservation of the facade we have developed I will expect you to comply. That is what you agreed too. I have kept to my end of the deal. I am certain that you will do the same... or else," he finished.

"Or else what?" she asked annoyed.

"I will consider our dealings null and void and take control of the X-Men as I had previously planned," he said.

_'Everything I've done would've been for nothing. I can't let that happen. I won't let him destroy my family,'_ she thought. "So, it's still blackmail," she said.

"I'm afraid it must be, Anna. I love you," he said.

_'That's up for debate,' _she thought.

"But I can not allow you to inform Charles of anything you have learned while in my captivity. I am truly sorry that I must utilize threats to insure your cooperation," he said.

"Me too," she said quietly.

"In terms of us, well," he said. "I can not justify keeping a telepath in Bayville just to help us coordinate our encounters," he said.

"Because you never done that before," she said sarcastically. She watched his eyes narrow. She rolled her eyes as she asked, "So, what does that mean?"

"According to our facade the last time we spoke was over the phone," he said.

"I hung up on you," she reminded him.

"Yes, you did. The next time we speak, in public, that is where we will pick up our relationship."

"We're gonna pretend the last three weeks didn't happen?" she asked in disbelief.

"At least while we are in the company of other people. Once I manage to get you alone we can resume our relationship as it is," he said.

"And what? Prof's gonna know that we're meeting up?" she asked.

"_After _the fact. I will resume kidnapping you. Charles will assume that I am still attempting to recruit and seduce you," he said.

"You _are_ still trying to recruit and seduce me," she pointed out..

"Therefore, this arrangement will not require you to lie constantly to him," he said with a smile. "I hope that will make you feel more comfortable with our situation," he asked.

"It ain't the worst plan. But what if Prof wants to read my mind and watch the encounters for himself? He's done that before," she said.

"Anna, you have a prefect memory. You could write him out a _transcript_ if you wanted to. Simply explain what happens between us without giving Charles a reason to read your mind. You're a clever girl. A brilliant strategist. I have faith in your ability to misinform him," he said.

"So, you ain't holding me to our first deal?" she asked. He raised an eyebrow.

"What are you referring too?" he asked.

"You promised not take me from my home if I didn't tell anyone about anything I've learned while we were talking. You told me that ever conversation we had from that point on was subject to that agreement. If this is gonna work then I'm gonna need to be able to talk about what we say to Prof _without_ you threaten to take me away for good because of the conversation. I don't see how this is gonna work if I can do that," she explained.

"... Very well, I am no holding you to terms our of previous agreement. You can discuss our conversations with Charles but try to keep your details to a _minimum_. There are certain topics of discussion I'm sure you will avoid. Do we need to list them?" he asked; she could hear the slightest trace of irritation in his voice..

"No," she said dryly. "I understand what I shouldn't talk about," she said.

"Good... However," he said before sighing, "if the situation escalates beyond your control then you _can_ contact me. I will arrive and reaffirm the facade. Please do not misunderstand. I offer that option as a _last resort_. I assume that you will employ ever means available to you to ensure that Charles remains unaware of the literal terms of our relationship," he said.

"Okay, but..."

"Yes?" he asked.

"I would prefer _not_ to be abducted every other day," she said.

"The abductions will be at my discretion and not _that_ frequent of an occurrence. It must not appear that I am-"

"Obsessed with me?" she asked with a smirk before taking her last bite.

"I was going to say _in love_, but I suppose both notions must be avoided," he said before he took one last bite of food.

"Right," she said

"Any other details, I'm positive, we will be able to handle as they occur," he finished as he put his fork down.

"So, what now?" she asked.

"I would like to clean up this mess and then I will take you home," he said.

"Thank you," she said again. He chuckled as he stood up.

"That seems to be your favorite phrase today," he said picked up his plate.

"If you don't want me to-" she started to say as she watched him pick up her plate.

"It was not a critique, Anna," he said as he walked over to her. "Merely an observation," he said before he leaned down and kissed her forehead: she felt herself relax. "You offered your assistants before. May I ask for it now?" he asked.

"Yeah, sure," she said as she got to her feet and followed him over to the sink.

"Thank you, Commodore," he said as he put their dishes on the counter.

"You want me to wash everything, don't you?" she guessed.

"I would greatly appreciate it, Anna," he said as he came up behind her and wrapped an arm around her waist. She twisted her neck to the side as she felt his breath on her neck; allowing him more access to her skin. She moaned as he sucked on her neck; his free hand latching onto her breast. "Or we could ignore the dishes and precede to engage in a much more entertaining activity?"

"We've already done this twice today," she said.

"At your age, Anna, it is impossible to have too much sex," he leered.

"I still wanna go home tonight," she mumbled.

"It's only six; plenty of time, my girl," he said huskily. She was running out of excuses and if she was being honest with herself she was tired of thinking of reasons why she shouldn't do this with him; not when it made her feel so good, so alive. She spun around in his arms and glanced up at him.

"...You- you know what I need ta hear, Max," she said in between gasps as she placed her arms on his chest. He smirked.

"You have my word, I will return you to the institute sometime tonight," he promised as he pulled her up against him.

"Yes," she said breathlessly with a nod before he captured her lips.

"You should speak that word to me more often," he uttered. "Should we go to bed?" he asked.

She smiled before whispering, "Yes, Max."

"That's my girl."

* * *

And I'm done for the moment! Woo! Please review. I love reading them! Those of you who reviewed last chapter have gotten my response individually. Or at least you should have: if you haven't please let me know so I can try again and respond to you :)


	31. Chapter 30

I apologize for the first two paragraphs. I know I should _show_ not tell you how Rogue is feeling; but I don't feel like writing out the whole car ride back to the institute. It's fulled with a lot of awkward pauses and mostly silence between the two of them. Instead, I'm summing up Rogue's feelings from the forty-five minute ride and getting straight into the much more interesting (at least in my opinion) part of the conversation.

Please enjoy :)

* * *

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Thirty

It was a little past midnight when Magneto finally kept to word, and returned Rogue to the institute. The ride there had been tense, to say the least. Once they had exited the house; the reality of her situation had started to come back to her. He was returning her to her family. It had been so long since she had seen them it seemed almost surreal to her. There were so many questions in the back of her mind. Things she had asked before; issues she had tried to bring up; that paled in comparison to the safely of her family.

But now that she knew they were safe; well as safe as they could be from Magneto; her mind had started to bring up those questions again. It had taken an considerable amount of effort to keep herself from asking them. She was still holding onto the peaceful feeling she had started to covet these last few days. She could ask, but she didn't want to disturb their peace. She wanted to enjoy this quite moment while it lasted.

Rogue held back a gasp as she gazed upon the remains of her home from the front seat of Magneto's car.

_'Girl, you knew it was gonna be bad,'_ she told herself as Magneto put his hand on her shoulder.

"Are you alright, Anna?" Magneto asked.

"Yeah," she said quietly. "Yeah, I just... knowing it's gonna happen and actually seeing it are- it's two different thing," she muttered.

"It will be rebuild. I've already sent Charles the check," he told her. She quickly turned to glance at him. "_Anonymously_, of course, but he now possesses the funds the X-Men require to reconstruct your home," he said as he gave her shoulder a comforting squeeze.

"I didn't- I didn't know you were gonna do that," she muttered.

"I have been and will continue to be the X-Men's largest contributor," he told her.

"...Thank you," she found herself saying yet again..

"My pleasure," he said with a smile. She returned his smile for a moment.

_'Alright, girl, it's time to go home,'_ she thought as she willed herself to turn away from him; but she found herself hesitating. A part of her didn't want to get out of the car; a part of her wanted to stay with him. She felt her smile falter as she took a deep breath_. 'Just get out of the car,'_ she told herself as she took a deep breath. She turned away from him towards the door.

"Not yet, Anna," he told her. She felt her heart skip a beat.

"Why?" she asked; quickly meeting his gaze.

"We can't have _two _of you running around the institute. We are waiting for Cargirll," he answered.

"Oh."

"Are you in a hurry to leave?" he asked; there was the slightest trace of annoyance in his tone..

"No, it ain't that, Max," she said reassuringly. Honestly, she wanted to get away from him while she possessed the will power to leave. "I just wanna go ta sleep," she said. "You know how to tire a girl out," she added with a small smile. He chuckled.

"That I do," he said happily before he kissed his forehead; she felt her face flush at the contact. His hand moved from her shoulder to her cheek before he brought his lips to hers.

A few minutes later Rogue tore her lips from Magneto's when she heard a knock at her door. She turned and let out a small gasp when she saw herself staring into the car.

_'It's just Cargrill,'_ she thought as she looked into what appeared to be her own eyes She turned back to Magneto. "Guess, this is it then," she said.

"For the moment. You will met again soon enough," he said before he kissed her cheek. "You have my word," he whispered in her ear before he pulled away. Rogue took a deep breath as her eyes met his.

_'You need to get out of the car,'_ she thought. "Good night," she said quickly before she raced out of the car. To her surprise Magneto exited the car as she did.

"Ms. Cargrill," he said.

"Yes, sir," she replied in an southern accent that sounded remarkably similar to her own. Rogue felt a shiver run down her spine; she wasn't sure if it was the cold night air, or the eeriness of seeing someone impersonate her so well, that caused it.

"You may remove your disguise," he said. Joanna Cargrill touched her hand to her seemingly bare wrist and the image around her faded and revealed a young black woman. "The coordinates have already been loaded into the g.p.s; follow them. There you will receive your next orders," he commanded.

"Yes, sir," she said again; dropping the accent from her voice. Both Rogue and Magneto watched her get into the car. As it was pulling away Magneto walked closer to her.

"So," he said as he placed his hands on her shoulders, "now for a proper farewell." He leaned in and placed his lips on hers. She moved closer to his as she placed her hands on his chest. She let out a soft moan as he deepened the kiss. She felt him wrap an arm around her waist. He broke the kiss. "Forgive me, my girl, but I can not leave you here tonight without asking this question," he said. She gazed up into his eyes.

"What- what question, Max?" she asked anxiously.

"Are you certain you wish to leave me?" he asked.

_'No, no I ain't,'_ she thought with a sigh before her eyes narrowed. "...Why did ya have to ask like _that_?" she asked annoyed. "Of _course_, I don't wanna leave you. I like you. Our conversations-... everything. I- I like the way you make me _feel_... God, I-" she started to say as she ran her hands down his chest; she heard him suck in a breath. "I _love_ this part," she said before she gave him a quick kiss. She started to pull away; but felt his hand in her hair pulling her lips back to his.

"Max," she said breathlessly a moment later, "I have to go back. They're my family," she said. "I've worked so hard to get back here. I don't expect you to understand why, but this is something I need to do. Please don't make this harder for me than it has to be," she said..

"Harder?" he asked an eyebrow raised. "Departing from my company is difficult for you?" he asked.

"...Yes," she admitted. He smiled warmly at her. "But I still need to do it," she pointed out. He brushed her hair behind her ear before let out a long sigh.

"...You do not have to re-" he started to say.

"Max," she said annoyed interrupting him breaking out of his hold. "Don't finish that sentence..._ please," _she added with desperation as she turned to look at him. "I asked you _not_ to make this harder for me. And then of course you have to go and-... Just- ...how am I getting over the wall?" she asked irritated.

"My assistance," he said his eyes narrowing.

"Then start assisting," she said as she crossed her arms over her chest. He took a step towards her. They held each others glare for a long moment until he sighed; his expression softening.

"I am sorry, Anna. When you are concerned, I'm afraid, I allow my emotions to get the better of me. You have to understand, my girl, I have no desire to relinquish you to another's custody," he told her gently.

"Not even _my own_?" she asked riled. She watched his eyes widen.

"I misspoke," he said quickly as he reached out to touch her arm.

"Yes, you did," she said pulling away from him.

"What I meant to say is that I do not want to leave you here," he explained hastily. "I do not want to leave you _anywhere," _he said strongly as he took hold of her arm. "Anna," he said as he pulled her to face him, "it has been _decades," _he said as their eyes made contact, "since I have had the desire to have a partner by my side. I never thought I would find another who could fill that role; but you _do_, my love, so beautifully, so _perfectly," _he said as he ran his hand down her cheek. She felt her face blush all over the again. "And now, that I have found you, I want nothing more than for you to take up that role," he said.

_'Why does he always have ta make it sound so good?'_ she thought closing her eyes; needing to look at anything besides him. "You want _everything,_ Max," she said. "Everything I have," she said as she glance up at him.

"And in exchange I want to _give_ you everything in return... an equal trade," he told her. She didn't want to say no to him again.

"I'm too exhausted for this conversation. I just wanna go pass out," she told him.

"Anna-" he started to say; she could tell by his tone that he was only going to ask again. She felt a surge of anger; why couldn't he just stop?

"_Please_, let me go to sleep," she said. "I would've walked away already, but I need your help to get over the wall," she said; hugging herself.

"Alright," he said sadly as he wrapped an arm around her waist.

"Thank you," she said annoyed as she looped her arms around his neck

"We're going to have to extremely quiet from this point on. I don't believe either of us wish to wake any of your family members," he said softly as he lifted them both into the air. "I have no desire to issue threats this late at night," he said as he moved them both over the wall. She felt a fear filled shutter run down her spine.

"You're right, I don't want that," she whispered as he landed them to the ground. "Just, why do you always have to push your luck?" she asked disappointed as she gazed up at him.

"Because," he whispered as he wrapped an arm around her shoulder, "I enjoy challenging you and the boundaries of our relationship," he answered as the two of them began to walk.

"Well, I don't mind that but people have their limits; _I_ have my limits. Ya gotta know when to give it a rest," she whispered

"I am not accustomed to compromising," he whispered.

"No shit," she muttered with a small smile. "That's another thing you gotta work on," she said.

"I am not the only one who has failed to accommodate," he whispered.

"What the hell are you talking about?" she whispered frustrated; struggling to keep her voice low. "All I've done is compromise myself to your standards," she told him.

"And you claim that I haven't?" he asked in disbelief. "I postponed and rewrote an entire _strategy_ to suit your desires," he snapped as his grip on her shoulder.

"I've manipulated my own family to further a future plan of your that you refuse to explain to me," she rebutted as she tried to get out of his hold. After a moment of resistance he let her go as they both continued to march through the grass.

"I have altered my schedule countless times to accommodate your questions and mistakes," he whispered.

"I've lied to every member of my family to save _your_ telepaths from working overtime," she whispered.

"And _also_ to ensure that you could return here," he pointed out.

"So, I haven't told anyone; I haven't had the chance too in over a week since _you_ knocked me unconscious," she said.

"You agreed to that," he said as he paced a foot ahead of her.

"Yeah, the _third_ time you did it. The first two times you didn't even ask me," she said bitterly. He stopped walking.

"I most certainly did, Anna Marie," he said strongly as he turned to face her. "You asked me night after night if there was anything I could do," he said. Her eyes widening as she realized what he was about to say. "If I could help you sleep without the nightmares. You asked for my help. I provided it," he said.

"How?" she asked as she gazed up at him. He looked away from her. "I deserve to know, Max," she whispered with conviction.

"First I called upon the iron in your blood to render you unconscious," he said.

"I got enough iron in me for that?" she whispered in disbelief. "I don't eat that much red meat," she pointed out.

"There might have been a few injections involved in the onset of this process," he said.

"Might have?" she whispered infuriated. "Did you or didn't you inject me with iron?" she asked.

"I did," he answered. She felt violated. "You said you were willing to try _anything_," he said. "It was experimental on both our parts. Despite all the years I have had to practice; the human body's electrochemical signals are not something I have tampered with often enough. When you asked for my help I had only thought about the process on a _theoretical_ level. I was not certain it would work as I told you that night," he whispered.

"But it did," she said softly.

"Yes,_ thankfully_ it did. Do you want to know how?" he asked.

"Yes...," she answered softy.

"Well, in order to manipulate the-" he started to say.

"Wait," she interrupted. "I don't wanna know. Not tonight. I'm too damn tired for this," she muttered. A thought occurred to her. "You're not going to be here tonight. Are the nightmares gonna come back?" she asked fearfully.

"Of course not. I have taken care of those details," he whispered.

"_That_ I need ta know how," she told him. He sighed.

"I had Ms. Frost create mental blocks to keep the fragments from effecting you on an unconscious level," he said.

"That's possible?" she asked.

"Apparently," he said with a smile. "If those nightmares reoccur I want you to call me so I can have it fixed," he said.

"Great, I need fixing," she muttered.

"Not _you_, Anna, the by-product of your powers. There is no reason for you to endure the trauma of seeing someone_ die_ every night," he said.

"No, there ain't," she mumbled softly; a few of the horrifying images crept to the front of her mind. Taking a deep breath she pushed them back the way Magneto had taught her. She let out a sigh. _'How could one man simultaneously be responsible for so many good _and_ bad things in my life?'_ she asked herself. "Thanks," she muttered gazing up at him.

"Your welcome," he said as he took a step closer to her. "May we try this again?" he asked as he put his hands on her shoulders rubbing. "Saying our farewells, I mean. I would, if you allow, prefer to end this night pleasantly," he said. "Especially, considering the way it _started_," he said with a smirk. She couldn't help but smile.

"Okay," she said as she placed her hands on his chest. They kissed.

"Good night, Anna," he uttered.

"Good night, Max," she whispered before she pulled away from him.

* * *

That's all for today. Thank you for reading and please review!

Oh, in the first two paragraphs I said that Rogue had tons of questions, but I failed to mention what those questions were. I did that on purpose. I wanted to get you all thinking about what questions your curious about. So, please do me a favor and write a review posting your questions (if any) and I will answer them within the next few chapters of the fic.

Thank you again for tolerating my shameless attempts to get you guys to talk to me. :)


	32. Chapter 31

Disclaimer: All these characters and the dialog from the episode Mainstream belong to someone who is not me. So no suing marvel/WB! ;p

I hope you all enjoy it!

* * *

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Thirty-One

Rogue slowly opened her eyes as she woke up. Turning on her side she glanced at Kitty; her roommate in the tiny room they were sharing. There was barely enough room for the beds.

_'Well, that what happens when you turn a bunch of closets into makeshift bedrooms,'_ she thought to herself. She let out a sigh as she glanced at Kitty; she looked so peaceful, happy.. _'I'm... I'm glad she doesn't know everything that happened,' _she thought.

After a moment she watched Kitty open her eyes.

"Good morning, Rogue," Kitty yawned.

"Good morning, Kitty," she smiled.

"...You okay? You're, like, looking at me weird," Kitty mumbled.

"Am I?" she asked with a soft laugh. "Sorry. It feels like it's been weeks since we were in a room together," she said honestly, "and just _relaxed_," she added smoothly.

"We all watched that movie last night," Kitty pointed out.

"Well, aside from that," Rogue said quickly. "I'm just happy to see you. That weird?" she asked. Kitty shook her head with a smile.

"No, it's nice," she said as she sat up. "I'm happy to see you too, Rogue," Kitty smiled. Both Rogue and Kitty turned towards the door when they heard a knock.

"You girls awake?" Scott asked through the door.

"Yeah," Rogue replied.

"Breakfast in five," Scott said.

"Oh, I hope the bathroom's free," Kitty said quickly as she got out of bed. Rogue watched Kitty phase through the door. With a smile she let her head fall back onto her pillow as she let out a sigh in relief.

_'I'm home,'_ she thought to herself as her eyes closed blissfully. After a moment her eyes shot open. _'Fuck, I have no idea where we're all eating,'_ she thought as she rushed to her feet. Magneto had informed her which sub-level she was sleeping on; even which room was hers. But that was the extent of his explanation._ 'Girl, relax,'_ she reprimanded_. 'Kitty just went to the bathroom. We never eat breakfast in our pajamas. She's be back in a minute to get dressed and then I'll follow her. I just,'_ she started to think as she glanced around the small room,_ 'have ta get dressed too.'_ She spotted the closet and walked over to it.

She glanced at the clothes. 'Not much of a section,' she thought. She pulled out an outfit from the limited amount of choices and started to get dressed.

_'God, it feels like its been forever since I wore long sleeves,' _she thought as she pulled the black shirt over her head. _'Guess I gotta get used to this again,' _she thought._ 'Fuck, where are my gloves?' _she asked frustrated. She walked over to the night stand in between her and Kitty's bed and opened the draw. She let out a sigh in relief as she pulled out a pair of black gloves. _'Now, where's Kitty?'_ she asked. _'Thought she'd be back by now,'_ she thought as she exited the room.

Rogue felt her heart skip a beat as she glanced around the abandoned hallway. '_Why am I the last one? I didn't think I took that long,' _she thought as she continued to look around._ 'Oh, thank god,' _she thought relieved as she caught a glimpse of someone foot at the end of the hallway. "Hey, wait up," Rogue called out as she chased after the individual the foot was attached to.

"Rogue?" Scott asked.

"Hi, Scott," she said as she turned the corner to face him.

"You, okay?" he asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I just didn't feel like walking to breakfast alone," she explained as she walked up to his side. She watched him stare at her curiously for a second. _'Come on, Scott. Just please start walking,'_ she thought to herself. Thankfully, he did. She sighed as she started to walk with him.

"How'd you sleep last night?" Scott asked.

"Fine," she answered as they stepped into an elevator. Rogue was careful not to go near the buttons. She had no idea which of the Institute's sub-levels they were going to and had no desire to try and explain why. "How about you?" she asked as he pressed a button. She tried to look nonchalant as she glanced at his selection._ 'Third sub-level,'_ she thought.

"I think I have a hairball in my throat," he said dryly.

"What?" she asked confused.

"A hairball in my throat," he repeated. "I knew Kurt shed but I didn't know he shed _that_ much. There's hair all over the place. It's on everything. I'm pretty sure I swallowed some last night," he explained dryly. She couldn't help but laugh. "Thanks Rogue," he said sarcastically.

"Sorry, Scott," she said as she tried to stop laughing. To her, after everything she'd had to endure, worrying about sleeping arrangements seemed _trivial._ "Sorry," she said again as she actually stopped laughing. "I thought we weren't supposed to get mad at Kurt for shedding," she said. She glanced up at his confused expression. "Your words, Scott," she reminded him with a laugh.

"I said that _before_ I had to share a room with him. And I'm really not mad at Kurt. Just the situation," he pointed out.

"Well, hey, they already started working on the new institute. It'll be done soon- ...ish," she added with a smile. "And then we'll all have our space again. We just gotta get through the next few weeks and look on the bright side of the situation," she said.

"And what would that be?" he asked as the doors to the elevator opened.

"That we're all together," she said as she watched him walk out of the lift. "For a while there we were all kinda _scattered_," she said as she followed him out. "But now we're all back under the same roof again," she said as she caught up with him. "Yeah, right now it's just a hole in the ground. But it's _our_ hole in the ground, and that's what matters, right?" she asked with a smile as she glanced up across at him. "That we're all together as a _family_," she finished.

"...Yeah, yeah, you're right," he said with a small smile as he scratched the back of his neck. "...Thanks, Rogue," he said as they entered the kitchen area. She glanced around. Looked like only the older students were eating at this time; it was just her, Scott, Jean, Evan, and Kurt.

"Anytime, Scott," she said with a smile before she glanced at her breakfast choices. Her eyes lite up as she glanced at one of the cereal boxes. "I am, so, having some of those coco-puffs," she muttered to herself as she and Scott further entered the kitchen area. Some of the others were already seated at the table, talking, but she payed no attention to them as she walked over the counter to stand next to Kurt. "Good morning, Kurt," she said with a smile. There were a pile of bowls to Kurt's left.

"Morning, Rogue," he said returning the smile.

"Little brother, would you pass me a bowl, please?" she asked with a smile.

"Yeah, sure," he smiled as he reached over and put one in front of her. "Do you want a spoon too?" he asked.

"Yeah, that'd be great," she smiled as she took the box of cereal in her hands and poured herself some. Out of the corner of her eye she watched him open the draw next to him and grab two spoons. "Thanks," she said as he put the spoon in her bowl. It was then she re-felt the almost overwhelming desire to hug her brother that she had had to repress while with Magneto. _'Later girl. You've waited this long. Hug him when people won't stare at ya for doing it,' _she told herself as she took a deep breath.

"You okay, sis?" Kurt asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine," she said as she shot him a quick smile before she picked up the bowl and walked over to the table. She watched Evan pour himself some milk before placing it on the table. She reached out and grabbed the carton swiftly as Kurt took a seat next to her. She poured some in her bowl and returned the carton to the table.

The hugest grin came to her face as she took her first bite. Magneto was no where to be seen, waiting to disapprove of her selection, forcing her to eat something he considered more appropriate. Who knew freedom could taste like chocolate?

"Girl, you are way too happy this morning," Evan said.

"I just woke up in a good mood, is all. What's wrong with that?" Rogue asked with a raised eyebrow before she took her second bite. Out of the corner of her eye Rogue watched Kitty phrase into the room.

"...What's there to happy about?" he muttered under his breath. She glanced around the table. Evan and Jean were looking at her curiously. Rogue sighed.

"How about that we're all back together as a family?" Scott asked as he took a seat next to Jean, across from Rogue, cereal in hand.

"Scott, way to go all mushy on us," Kitty said with a laugh from the counter. Scott flashed Rogue a quick smile. She smiled back.

"Mushy or not, Scott's right," Jean said backing him up.

"Hey, I, like, totally agree," Kitty said quickly as she sat down at the table.

"Yeah, it is nice that we are all together," Kurt said. Evan stood up.

"I think I need to go throw up or something," Evan said as he marched out of the room.

"Evan," Jean called out concerned as she started to get up.

"Let him go," Scott said as he placed his hand on her shoulder.

"But," Jean started to protest.

"We all have to deal with this in own ways," Scott explained. Jean sat back down.

_'Ya all have no idea how much _worse_ it could've been,' _Rogue thought with sigh.

"Hey, like maybe this afternoon will cheer him up," Kitty offered with a smile.

"Kitty, I don't think Evan going to get _that _excite to go shopping," Jean said.

"But we're going shopping in _New York City. _I mean, come on, we all get to buy new clothes. A whole closet full! How can he not have fun with that?" she asked.

"Because he's a guy," Scott and Kurt said together; Kurt with a mouthful of cereal. Rogue and Jean both laughed.

"Oh, you guys totally don't get it," Kitty said.

"Well, we'll have all afternoon for you to explain it to us," Scott said with a smile as he turned back to his food. Rogue ate another glorious spoonful of co-co-puffs and she couldn't help but smile.

_'It's nice to be home,' _Rogue thought.

* * *

Rogue glanced around the section of clothes on display in Forever 21; the store Kitty had insisted they check out.

_'To low cut...no sleeves... _way_ too low cut,' _Rogue thought to herself. Did no one sell sheer shirts anymore? She liked the clothes she had. '_The clothes I _have_,'_ she thought to herself annoyed. _'Not like I can explain why all my stuff is safe and sound in Jericho,' _she thought.

"Hey, Rogue," Kitty called out. "I think I found something for you," she yelled happily; waving from across the store. Rogue sighed as she walked over to where Kitty was standing. "Look," she beamed as she took the purple shirt off the rack. "Doesn't this look like that shirt you got a few weeks ago?" she asked with a smile as she held it up.

"Yeah," she muttered quietly as she took it from Kitty._ 'This is the same shirt Max brought for me,'_ Rogue thought to herself.

"And I was thinking that _this_," Kitty started to say as she reached to the rack behind her and pulled out a black tank top, "would be good to wear under it," she said. Rogue glanced at the outfit for a moment. The last time she had this shirt on she had taken it off soon after; she didn't want to feel owned by Magneto.

_'What if I buy it for myself this time?' _she asked herself. _'With money Prof got _from_ Magneto,' _she thought sadly._ 'Guess feeling feel ain't really an option anymore,' _she sighed. She took another look at the shirt. She really did like it. "You don't think it's too low cut?" Rogue asked. "I mean with my powers and all," she added.

"It's, like, finally getting warm out again. You're going to need lower cut stuff. You can't wear long sleeves all the time," she laughed.

"Worked last year," Rogue muttered, "Kind've... I _hate_ warm weather," she said under her breath.

"Well, like...I mean, with everyone knowing who we are now, maybe you don't have to be so careful anymore. Maybe people will just, like, give you your space," she said with a smile.

"Maybe," she thought as she looked through the different colors the shirt was offered in. If she was going to buy this shirt it was not going to in the same color Magneto picked out. Except that was the only color she really like. The green was okay. "Maybe I'll get two of 'em," she said took out a green shirt in her size too.

"Hey, that's the spirit," Kitty said as she took hold of Rogue's arm, "and over here I saw this pair of jeans that would look totally hot on you. They're dark denim so they'll fit right into your style," she said as she led Rogue across the store.

"Kitty, I can shop for myself, ya know," Rogue claimed.

"Then, like, why haven't you brought anything yet?" she asked.

"I got something at Old Navy," she pointed out.

"Pajamas don't count. Nobody sees you in them," she said dismissively as they came to a halt. "So, what do you think?" she asked as she pointed to the pants she was referring to. Rogue smiled; they really would suit her.

"I try' em on," she said with a smile.

"Alright," Kitty exclaimed, "And over here I saw this shirt," Kitty started to say as she grabbed hold of Rogue's arm again. Rogue just smiled as her friend led her around the store. She had to admit that all of Kitty's suggests were tailored to her tastes. She couldn't help but get as least one of most of her roommate's choices.

* * *

The rest of the weekend was quiet; unbelievably uneventful. No abductions or threats; Magneto was no where to be seen. She had done normal things; like watch movies and argue over who got the last slice of pizza. Of course, she had relented and allowed Kurt eat it, but it had been so much fun to tease her little brother.

It had been nice to just relax.

But now it was Monday morning and the Professor had called them all to sub-level seven; to talk. Rogue sighed as she took a seat next to the Professor. They were going back to school today. The fight that she had helped plan between the X-Men and the Brotherhood was going to happen today.

_'So much for things being peaceful,' _she thought annoyed.

"Good news, the school board has agreed to let you all attend classes today._ Provided _no one uses their powers," Professor said.

"Just today?" Scott asked.

"Yes, because tonight they'll be voting on whether or not to impose a permanent mutant band. You can see how important it is to be on your best behavior," Professor Xavier said.

"Professor," Kitty sighed, "I'm- I'm afraid to go back there. We don't fit in anymore," she said.

"It won't be easy, at first Kitty. But eventually you will be accepted. And this time for _all _that you are," he finished as he held up a newspaper. Rogue sighed as she read the headline: 'Monster among us?'

_'I still don't understand why Max wants us to be feared,' _Rogue thought to herself. '_Doesn't he realize how hard life is gonna be for us now? And what about mutants who _don't _have a security system guarding them at night? Who's gonna protect them from the fanatics who haven't been locked up yet?' _she asked herself. Of course, she received no answer; not from herself or from the fragments within.

"If they don't like us, that's their problem," Evan said pulling Rogue from her thoughts

"Evan," Professor Xavier said. "What I'm saying is let's just not give people a reason to fear us, " he said.

_'To bad it's not his call,' _Rogue thought annoyed.

"Hey," Kurt said, "they named me identity unknown," he said as Rogue glance up to see him walking across the table.

"Yeah, look. The only pictures they have of you are blue and furry," Kitty said.

"That means no one has made the connect it's me," he said happily.

"_Yet_," Scott said as he put his hand on Kurt's shoulder. "But they will, Kurt," Scott said. Rogue frowned at the comment. "Especially, the people who know that you live here," he pointed out.

"Yeah, but- but," Kurt stuttered before sighing. "You're right. They'll figure it out," he lamented.

"I'd like you all at tonight's school board meeting. Let them look you in the faces when they vote," Professor Xavier said.

_'Too bad most of us will be too busy fighting the Brotherhood to attend,' _she thought annoyed as she blew some hair out from in front of her face.

"Now, make the best of your first day back," Professor Xavier finished. With that everyone stood up.

"Hey, Kurt. Hold up for a minute," Rogue said before he teleported out of the room. Kurt looked up at her as some of the others walked past him towards the elevator.

"Hurry up, you guys, we don't want to be late for school," Scott said as as he headed for the door.

"This will just take a minute. We'll met you by the car," Rogue said. Scott nodded as he and the Professor exited the room.

"What's up, Rogue?" Kurt asked. Rogue walked up to him and pulled him into a hug. She smiled as she felt her brother wrap his arms around her back. "That's the tenth hug this weekend," he said.

"You complaining?" she asked.

"No," he said with a smile. "What was this one for?" he asked as he broke the hug. Rogue let out a sigh.

"I'm sorry you're not gonna be able to blend in at school anymore. I know how much that means to you," she said.

"It's okay," he said softly.

"No, it's not," she said strongly. "You should be able to walk through the halls of your school and," she started to rant but stopped herself. They weren't at school yet. Kurt didn't need need to feel any worse then he already did. "Look, it's gonna get better. Yeah, you might lose a few friends but anyone who willing to judge you just on what you look like is_ not_ worth your time, little brother. You're too good of a person for their type," she said.

"Thanks, Rogue," he said with a small smile.

"But, Kurt, ya are right about one thing," she said.

"What?" he asked.

"No one's put it together yet. Some of the others might not understand, but if you wanna blend in for a few mores days, until people put two and two together, I'm okay with that," she said as she put her hand on his shoulder.

"Thanks, sis," Kurt said before he teleported them out of the room.

* * *

Rogue walked across the school's campus feeling uneasy. Kitty had been right; people were willing to give her, her space, about a five foot radius of it.

Rogue sighed as she glanced upon Scott being bullied by Ducan Mathews and two other jocks.

"What does Ducan think he's doing?" Kitty asked.

_'Whatever, Elisabeth Braddock _makes _him do,'_ she thought annoyed. "Doesn't matter let's go put a stop to it," she said before she and Kitty ran over to where Scott and the boys were..

"You've had it Summers," Ducan said strongly.

"Bring it on. I don't need any powers to handle _punks_ like you," Scott said.

"Got it, Scott," Kitty said.

"Yeah, dropping these losers just might be worth getting expelled," Rogue said with a smile.

"You guys won't late two days here," Ducan said as he throw Scott's glasses to the ground.

_'We'll last longer than you think, asshole,'_ she thought annoyed as she walked over to where they landed. _'As long as Max allows,'_ she thought irritated as she leaned down to pick up the glasses,. _'Relax girl, think about the time you've gained. He promised to let us all live here until I graduate high school,'_ she thought before she turned back towards Scott and Kitty. _'A year and half. A lot can happen . Maybe I'll- I should just enjoy this time with my family,'_ she thought sadly as she walked over to Scott. "Here ya go. They're gone," she said with a smile as put as she put his glasses on him.

"Thanks," he said before walking away.

"Hey," a student started to say, "what's your special power? Can you, like, read my mind?" he asked. Both Kitty and she were annoyed; this was the tenth time she had been asked that or another equally annoying question about their powers.

"Yeah, like I could fine it," she replied as both of them walked away.

"Hey," Kitty said, "I think I saw Kurt," she said.

"Where?" Rogue asked. She hadn't seen Kurt since this morning. She was actually starting to get a little worried.

"Over there," she pointed.

"Come on," Rogue said as she started to run in that direction. Kitty followed until they passed the building and saw Kurt talking to two boys.

"But you're friends with the mutants, right?"one of them asked.

"Ahh, ...well I used to be," he replied. "I- ah, ...listen I'm late for class," he mumbled as he backed away from them.

"Use to be?" she asked annoyed. "Thanks, Kurt," she said sarcastically.

"Oh, hello, Kitty. Bye, Kitty," he said nervously as he waved to them. "Busy, busy."

"What is up with him today?" she asked.

"I told Kurt he should try and blend in for a few more days. Not ta _denounce_ us in public," Rogue said.

"You told him what?" she exclaimed. Rogue let out a sigh.

"Kurt feels that getting that image inducer was the best thing that ever happened to him. He ain't ready to give up being able to walk down a hall without being _stared_ at. So, I told him to take advantage of the fact that no ones put two and two together yet," she explained. "But I didn't think he go _that_ far to blend in," she said disappointed.

"Right," she said annoyed. "Come on, Rogue, we still need to eat lunch," she said.

"Yeah, we do," she said as the both walked towards the cafeteria.

"Hey, good thing you wanted to go for a walk before we ate," Kitty offered attempting to lighten the mood.

"Yeah," she smiled._ 'More like careful planning with a ridiculous amount of attention ta detail,'_ she thought in angry.

* * *

The rest of the night had gone exactly as planned. They had fought the brotherhood, and Duncan Mathews. They had 'won' the fight while 'saving' the parents from the Brotherhood's attacks. And now they were sitting back in sub-level seven waiting for Professor Xavier to tell them if they would be returning to school.

_'Like I don't already know,'_ she thought annoyed.

"Before I announce the school board's decision I'd like to say how proud I am of all of you," Professor Xavier said.

"How can you say that, Professor?" Scott asked. "We let you down," he said.

"Yeah, it doesn't take a genius to know how they voted," Kitty said sadly.

"You saved their lives; Jean inspired them with her sincerity and as result they want to welcome you back," he said with a smile.

"Huh? Go figure," Evan said with indifference.

"Sorry, Professor, but it's a little of the good news, bad news, kind of thing," Jean said delicately.

"I realize this is not an easy time for you but please realize something. For whatever reason you have been chosen to take the first step into this new world; to lead the way; to be a beacon of hope for mutants yet to come," he said. Rogue inhaled attempting to keep her composure mirroring the engaged expression her teammates were presenting.

"This is not only a big responsible. It is an _honor. _I am always astonished at the wonderish things that can be build upon the ashes of tragedy. For even in the face of bigotry and discrimination the x-men will endure," he finished strongly. "And with that, I hope you all enjoy you second day back at school. You should head out soon. You wouldn't want to be late," he said with a smile.

"Yeah, wouldn't want to give people the impression that mutants everywhere ain't _punctual,_ " Rogue said sarcastically. The Professor shot her a puzzled look. "Sorry," she muttered quickly. "I forgot something in my room. I'll met ya all by the car. Please don't leave without me?" she asked.

"Just hurry up, okay?" Scott said.

"Okay," she said before she quickly marched out of the room and into the elevator. She pressed the button for the third sub-level before she leaned back against the wall. It was only when the doors closed that she let the tears, she had been repressing, out. She let herself slide down to her floor. She hugged her legs to her chest. _'Oh god,'_ she thought as she rested her face against the tops of her knees. Keeping secrets, lying, manipulating everyone and thing around her; she felt like a traitor. The Professor's speech about hope had been the final straw. _'How am I suppose to keep this up?'_ she asked herself as she struggled to keep herself from hyperventilating.

_'You do not have to,' _a dark voice in the back of her mind offered. She squeezed her legs as hard as she could; needing the comfort of a hug, having to settle for her lonely embrace. Every time he offered it was becoming more and more difficult to say no. A part of her wanted to call him and allow him to remove her.

"Rogue, are you alright?"

She glanced up to see Storm standing in front of her; she hadn't even noticed the elevator had stopped. Rogue took a deep; attempting to regain control over herself. Storm leaned down on one knee and put her hand on Rogue's shoulder; she smiled at the physical contact.

"What's wrong, child? I thought the school board voted to allow you all back," she said.

"T-they did," Rogue managed to say. "It ain't that," she muttered. "Well, it is that, I guess. The stress is just getting ta me is all. Needed a release," she explained.

"By crying?" she asked concerned. Rogue shrugged.

"You got a better one?" she asked.

"I prefer meditation. I could teach you some techniques," she offered. Rogue smiled.

"I'd- I'd really like that," she said.

"We could start after school today?" Storm asked.

"Okay," she smiled. Storm smiled back as she removed her hand from Rogue and stood up. Storm held out her hand; offering it to Rogue. Rogue took it and Storm helped her to her feet. "Storm, I," she started to say as she let go of her hand.

"Rogue, you _can_ call me Ororo," she said with a smile.

"I-," she tried to say as tears welled up in the corners of her eyes. Storm put her hand on her arm. Rogue couldn't help herself; she leaned in and hugged her. Storm hesitated for only a moment before she returned the hug.

"I have never seen you this upset before," she said concerned. "Rogue, what else is wrong?"she asked.

"It's- I... It's nothing and- and ever-everything," she muttered. "I- I usually keep it to myself. I ain't that big on sharing my emotions. You just- you just caught me at a bad time," she said as she backed out of the hug.

"It is not healthy to _hide_ all of your turmoil. That is why you are here with people who care about you. If you are struggling with anything please know that you can always talk to me, Logan, Hank, or Charles. I know _Kitty_ always has a sympathetic ear," she smiled.

"I- I know that," she smiled. "Thanks," she said before taking another deep breath. "I gotta go to school. All the others are waiting for me," she muttered.

"I'm certain that they will not leave without you," Storm said.

"I know that too," Rogue said with a smile. "Thank you, Ororo. We'll talk more after school?" she asked. Storm smiled.

"Maybe then you will tell what is _really_ upsetting you," she said.

"Maybe," Rogue said with a small smile before she turned and rushed into the bathroom. She glanced up into the mirror. She quickly turned on the water to wash the running makeup off of her face. '_Everything's okay, everything's okay. _This_ is where you belong. With people who care about you- ... Max, says that he _loves_ me,' _she thought; too many memories kept up into her mind; the feeling of contentment she had only felt with him resurfaced threatening to consume her.

'..._With people who wouldn't_ threaten_ me or use _blackmail_ to _control _me,' _she thought fighting the feelings she had for him; the feelings that urged her to seek him out and take her place by his side. _'_This_ is where I belong. I'm_ home_ and I don't wanna leave; I don't wanna abandon Kurt or Kitty or anyone of them. If they knew,' _she thought._ '...if _only_ they knew,' _she thought as she re-felt the impulse to cry.

Another deep breath._ 'If only I could tell them,' _she thought sadly. _'Deep breaths, girl. There ain't anything I can do to change the facts. I can only adapt to the situation,' _she thought as she followed her advice. "..._This_ is where I belong," she repeated strongly as she stared into her own eyes.

"You _belong_ in the _car,_" Kurt said from outside her door. He took her completely by surprise. She actually had to replay what he said. Once she did she couldn't help but laugh."We're going to be late for school," he yelled. She let herself laugh for another moment before she opened the door.

"Sorry, Kurt," she said as she saw him and Storm standing a few feet away from her.

"Did you at least find what you were looking for?" he asked with a sigh.

"My _backbone_, yeah I found it," she said with a smile.

"Huh?" he asked confused.

"Nothing, don't worry about it," she laughed before she glanced up at Ororo. "Thanks, Ororo," she said as she took Kurt's hand.

"You're welcome. I hope you both have a good day at school," she said.

"Thanks," said both her and Kurt.

"See you later," Rogue said before he teleported them out of the room.

* * *

Thank you for reading! Please review! :)


	33. Chapter 32

I am starting to get so fast with these updates! I think this is the fifth chapter I've written this year so far! I'm really very happy with how fast these chapters are coming out! I hope you all agree! And thank you for reading! Please review! Everytime I get a review or a favorite story or story alert email it just makes my day so much better! And hope that's that what reading this fic does for your guys; makes your days just a little bit better.

Okay, I stop being mushy now. But seriously the more reveiws I get the more effort I will make to update faster!

Please enjoy!

* * *

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Thirty-Two

Rogue let out a sigh as she walked through the front doors of Bayville high. It was only her fourth day back and already she couldn't wait for the week to be over.

_'Why did I wanna come back to school again?'_ she asked herself as she walked through the halls.

"Bye, Rogue, see you after first period," Kitty said as she went into a classroom; leaving her alone. Rogue let out a sigh as she entered the girl's bathroom. She started to head for one of the stalls when she heard the bathroom door opening. She glanced to see who it was and gasped in surprise when she saw Magneto out of the corner of her eye.

"Shh," he hushed quickly as he walked past her. She stood silently as Magneto opened all three bathroom stalls; they were empty. He stood to face her. "Good morning, Anna," he said with a smile.

"Hi," she muttered; she didn't know whether to be scared or happy to see to him.

"How have you been, my girl?" he asked as he walked up to her.

"O- okay, I guess," she as the stared into each others eyes. "How've you been, Max?" she asked as he brought his hand to her face. He smiled as she addressed him by his given name.

"Bored," he answered before his lips descended onto hers. She stepped closer to him, placing her hands on his chest, as his tongue sought out hers. "And missing you, beloved. I've become accustomed to having you in my day-to-day life," he said as he placed his hand on her waist; pulling her closer. "Allowing you to return to your family has been a difficult transition," he said. She couldn't bring herself to comment on his statement; it hadn't been an easy transition for her either.

He brought his lips to her again; she couldn't stop herself from moaning.

"I," she started to say as she pulled her face away from his. She needed to get away from him; before she couldn't bring herself to leave. "I gotta go ta class," she said breathlessly.

"I know," he uttered frustrated. "But first I have instructions for you," he told her.

"What kind've instructions?" she asked worried as she backed out of his hold. She knew this was coming; the day he would tell her what to do and she would be expected to obey without question. It was what she had agreed to; she price she was willing to pay for her family's freedom. She just didn't think it was going to be so soon.

"During your free period today you will meet Gambit. You're family is under the impression that you have already fought him during the emergence. You know what his powers are?" he asked.

"Yeah, he can manipulate kinetic energy and his has that charisma thing," she answered.

"Good. You and Miss, Pride must follow him," he ordered. Her eyes narrowed.

"I ain't dragging Kitty into this," she said.

"You will need her powers to complete your objective," he said.

"But," Rogue tried to protest.

"You will not be able to explain absorbing the girl for her abilities and even if you could the transfer would not last the duration. Anna, I have carefully considered this strategy. You have my word no one will be seriously injured," he promised. "This plan will protect the facade. I'm certain you re-"

"Fine," she huffed; she really didn't have a choice in the matter. "Where are we following him to?" she asked.

"You will see when you get there," he answered. "Just follow him," he ordered. "Everything else will fall into place. I will see you soon," he said before he kissed her lightly; her eyes closing. She felt him pull back. Slowly she opened her eyes; he was gone.

_'Of course,' _she thought to herself annoyed. She groaned as she heard the bell ring. "And now, I'm late," she said frustrated in more ways than one as she rushed out of the bathroom.

* * *

Rogue sat on a bench outside; attempting to get as much of her math homework done as she could while she had the chance.

"She's one of them," Rogue heard a whisper from behind her; followed by a chorus of giggles. She rolled her eyes as she stood up.

"Step off, I'm warning you," she heard Evan say annoyed. She turned to see Evan being bullied by two students.

"You mutants think we should all be afraid of you; don't you?" one of them said as he pushed Evan around. It was the same creep who had started trouble with Kurt a while back. She didn't know the bastard's name and she didn't care enough to find out. Apparently, this time he had a friend.

"Hey, I say we puck the spikes out of him one at a time and then who's see scared," the other said.

"Truth me," she said as she pushed one of the boys away from Evan. "It won't be us," she said as she got in the other's face.

"Who invited you, skunk head?" he asked as he pushed her to the ground.

_'God, I hate this guy,' _she thought.

"That's enough," Evan said strongly. Rogue looked up to see Evan had allowed his bones to surface.

"Evan don't," she warned as she got to her feet.

"Kelly's gonna boot you outta here for this," the boy said as he and his friend ran away.

"It's over," Rogue said. "Hurry up, retract those things," she ordered as she glanced around. Thankfully, no had witnessed them so far.

"I- I can't," he said "What's happening to me?" he asked distressed.

"Evan, come on, concentrate," she said quickly. She let out a sigh in relief as she watched him retract his bones. "Just keep your cool, okay," she said as she placed her hand on his shoulder. "I'm gonna go head off the lamebrains," she said.

"Okay," Evan muttered as she rushed after them. Out of the corner of her eye she caught a glimpse of Kitty. As she turned the corner she saw the two boys talking with Gambit.

_'Hey, we go,' _she sighed.

"Then consider this free advice," Gambit said as he threw a charged pencil into a tree. She watched it blow up. "Don't _mess_ with the mutants," Gambit said.

"Ugh...no problem," one of the boys said before they both ran away.

_'At least that solves that problem,'_ she thought as she walked up to Gambit. "What are _you_ doing here?" she asked annoyed; maybe he might give her a clue why she was supposed to follow him.

"Just passing by, Cherie," he said as he smirked at her.

_'Course not' _she thought annoyed.

"Nice day," he said before he turned and walked away; slowly.

"Hey," Kitty exclaimed as she walked up behind Rogue, "isn't that one of Magneto's new guys?" she asked.

"Yup, and he's up to something," Rogue said; playing the part she had to.

"We better go tell, Scott," Kitty said.

"Forget that. There's no time," she exclaimed as she grabbed onto Kitty's arm. Although at the pace Gambit was walking they probably had an at least ten minutes before they would lose sight of him. "Let's follow him," she said.

"But what about sixth period?" Kitty asked as Rogue as they followed after him.

"This is more important," Rogue said led her down the street; away from the school. Rogue noticed Gambit turn his head slightly towards them. She caught the side of his mouth; smirking; before he quickened his pace to a normal walking speed. _'Oh, yeah. He definitely knows we're supposed to be following him,'_ she thought as she didn't even try to hide. Kitty was thankfully going along with all this with no complaints or questions. She wondered which of Magneto's telepaths she had to thank for her roommate's compliance.

* * *

After a few minutes of mindlessly following; Rogue realized where it was they were heading.

"Kitty," she exclaimed as she pulled her to the side. _'I doubt the brotherhood knows what's going on,'_ she thought as she and Kitty hid behind the pole across the street from the brotherhood's house.

"The brotherhood?" Kitty asked. "What do you think he's doing here?" she asked.

"I don't know what Gambit's doing here," she said as they watched him enter the house. "Guess where just gonna have ta wait and see," Rogue said.

"Oh, so that's his name," Kitty said. "Hey, wait, how did you know?" Kitty asked.

"He-ah- he introduced himself at the warehouse," Rogue answered quickly.

"Really?" Kitty asked in disbelief. They heard a loud explosion come from the brotherhood's house.

"Come on, let's go take a closer look," Rogue said.

"What?" Kitty exclaimed as Rogue grabbed her hand and ran across the street. They ran up to the living room window; staying close to the ground.

"Back off," Gambit said strongly. Kitty gasped as they both watched a curtain covered toad light up with kinetic energy. Kitty started to stand up.

"Wait," Rogue whispered as she pulled Kitty back down. She lowered them both down below the window.

"I let go and you'll be repainting this room. So, let's talk," Gambit said.

"Talking's good, talking great. We hate painting," Toad muttered nervously.

"Alright," Lance said, "it's your show."

"No, it's _Magneto's_ show," Gambit said.

"Hey- hey," Toad muttered. "You think you could, ya know, let me-"

"He's giving you a chance to prove yourselves, and trust me you do _not_ wanna turn the man down," Gambit said completely ignoring Toad.

"Ah- okay, what's he want us to do?" Freddie asked.

"Piece of cake really. Just bust loose a captured mutant," Gambit explained.

"Great," Toad said, "and ah- by the way, could you-" Toad started to ask.

"So, who's Magneto got in mind?" Lance asked.

"You're old friend, Pietro," Gambit said.

_'_Great_, me and Kitty are the backup for when they fuck this up,' _Rogue thought annoyed.

"So, where do we have to go?" Lance asked.

"Look in you're glove-compartment. There's a g.p.s. loaded with the location. Ya all just follow the directions. I'm sure even a bunch of high school drop outs can manage that," Gambit said.

_'Can anything be easy today?' _Rogue asked frustrated.

"We'll manage just fine," Lance said annoyed.

"Yeah, I'm sure you will. Why else would Magneto send you lot on this mission if he didn't think ya all could handle it?" he asked; Rogue could hear the amusement in his voice. "I'm sure ya all will do just fine. Good luck," Gambit said; she heard footsteps.

"Come on," Rogue whispered grabbing Kitty's arm again. "We can't let them spot us," she whispered as she dragged her roommate back across the street to their previous hiding spot.

_

* * *

_A few minutes later Rogue and Kitty watched the brotherhood get into their jeep and pull out from their driveway.

"I can't believe it. Can't Lance stay out of trouble for one day?" Kitty asked.

"Not that boy," Rogue commented. "Come on, hick us a ride in that direction," Rogue ordered as she grabbed onto Kitty's wrist.

"What do you mean, _hick us a ride_?" she asked as they ran up to a bus stop. As the brotherhood's jeep drove forward Rogue and Kitty spotted a large truck headed in the same direction.

_'There's an idea,'_ Rogue thought as she took hold of Kitty's hand and ran towards the truck. As she jumped up; Kitty phased them into the back of the truck_. 'Okay,' _thought as she sat down._ 'This could work. A _location_ would've been nice, but okay... we can do this,'_ she thought.

* * *

Hours later Rogue and Kitty had run out of cars to stow away in. They had been walking up a mountain road for a good twenty minutes.

"So, hm, what part of your plan are you making up now?" Kitty asked as the both rubbed at their arms; attempting to keep warm.

"The part where it all comes together. Look there's Lance's ride," Rogue said as she started to run toward it. Just them the earth started to shake._ 'Not good,' _she thought as they started to run in the direction of all the noise.

"Oh man, I knew we should have called Scott," Kitty said as they saw the brotherhood fighting a bunch of soldiers.

"We can handle this, come on," Rogue said as she ran towards the actions. Thankfully, Kitty was right behind her. Her eyes widened as she saw that Lance was about to knock a soldier off of the side of the mountain. _'His orders were to rescue Pietro,'_ she thought as she grabbed onto the soldier, '_Not_ kill_ everyone,'_ she thought as she pulled them both out of the cars path. '_What does that boy think he is playing at,_' she though in anger.

"Aren't you with them?" the solder asked.

"Don't insult me," she replied before after Lance._ 'I have gotta power him down before he kills someone,' _she thought as she ran up behind him; stripping her glove off.

"Rogue?" Lance gasped out surprised.

"In the fresh," she said as she put her hand on his face. She held on for a few moments before he fell unconscious. "Oh no," Rogue said as she watched the truck Pietro was falling off the side of the mountain.

"I got him," Kitty yelled out as she phased into the truck.

"Oh my god," she exclaimed as she ran towards the side of the road. She let out a sigh of relief as she watched Kitty and Pietro phase out onto a ledge.

"Thanks, but you just about muffed that slowpoke," Pietro said.

"What?" Kitty asked confused as Pietro he ran away.

_'Who _didn't_ know we were supposed to be here?' _Rogue thought annoyed. "Kitty, you okay?" she asked.

"Yeah," she yelled back before disappearing into the rock. Rogue turned her attention back to the brotherhood. They had gathered into their jeep and where driving away.

"I don't think so," Rogue said as she used Lance's powers to shake the ground; attempting to stop them.

_'Damn it,' _she thought irate as they managed to escape. _'Now, how are we getting home?'_ she asked herself.

"Don't bother," Kitty said as she ran to Rogue's side. "They're gone. And so is Pietro, that jerk. I'll slowpoke him," she said as she put her hands on her hips.

"Hands in the air," they heard a voice yell from behind them.

"_Great, now we gotta deal with these guys,'_ Rogue thought as she and Kitty turned around. Kitty did as the instructed. "I'm gonna rock this place," she whispered.

"No wait," Kitty said.

_'Fine,'_ she thought.

"Stand down, men," one of the soldiers said.

_'Hey, that's that guy I saved,' _she thought as the soldier walked up to them..

"I saw what happened back there," he said.

"And?" Rogue asked.

"Thank you," he said.

"Ah- your welcome," Kitty said surprised as they both lowered their arms.

"I don't get it," Rogue said. _'Weren't they just transporting a _mutant_ prisoner.'_

"Not everyone hates mutants, miss," he explained. "We're just peacekeepers, like you," he said. She and Kitty looked at each other for a moment before turning back to the soldier in front of them. "I'd offer you girls a lift but ah- well we're kind've strained ourselves until another unit arrives," he explained.

"Oh, that's okay," Rogue said as they turned around. "We'll catch a ride, right?" she asked.

"Wrong," Kitty said strongly. "We are finding a phone and we are _calling_ Scott," Kitty said as they started their journey home.

* * *

About an half hour later Rogue and Kitty were still walking down the mountain. Rogue let out a sigh as she felt Lance's powers leave her; his consciousness slipping into the back of her mind with the others.

"Kitty, I'm... I'm sorry about all this," Rogue said.

"It's okay. I, like, knew it was a bad idea but I went along with it anyway," Kitty said.

"Yeah, I know, but-" Rogue started to say before they both noticed a silver Lexus headed in there direction.

"Hey! Maybe they'll have a cell phone," Kitty said happily as she wave her hand signaling for the car to stop. As the car got closer Rogue could make out the license plate number.

_'Why am I not surprised?'_ she asked herself. "Yeah, I'm pretty sure Magneto will have a cell on him," she said. Kitty stopped waving.

"Magneto?" she asked with a frown. "_That's_ Magneto?" she asked.

"Yeah," she said with a sigh.

"Could this day get any _worse_?" she asked annoyed.

"Hopefully not," Rogue muttered as the car pulled up to them. Rogue sighed as her eyes made contact with Magneto's as he rolled down his window.

"Good evening, Ms, Pride, Anna," Magneto said.

"Hi, Eric," Rogue said; immediately falling into the roll he expected her play. She watched a smirk spread across his face.

"Hmm, hello," Kitty muttered nervously with a small wave.

"I believe you ladies are in need of transportation," Magneto said.

"And you're offering?" Rogue asked as she crossed her arms over her chest.

"Of course," he said with a smile. "It's the least I can do to repay the kindness you showed to my son this afternoon," he said.

"Your son?" Kitty asked.

"Pietro," Rogue answered quickly.

"You were unaware?" Magneto said as he turned his attention to Kitty. "I'm surprised Charles did not-"

"Eric, could you spare us the backhanded insult about Prof? A rival's genealogy _ain't_ a normal topic of discussion," Rogue said.

"Very well." he said with a chuckle.

"And thanks for the offer, but my answer's the same as it was last time," Rogue said. She could see his eyes light up in amusement. "But," she said as she walked up to the car, "if you really wanna help you could let us use that cell phone I know you got in that pocket right there," Rogue said as she pointed to his trench-coat's left hand side. _'Great, now you're flirting with him,'_ she thought to herself.

"I assume, that you wish to contact Mr, Summers. As he is in possession of the X-Men's only working automobile," he said.

"Maybe, we should, like, find another phone," Kitty muttered nervously.

"That's hardly necessary," Magneto said. "Besides the next viable phone-line is at least a thirty minute car ride. I could only imagine how long it would take you two to walk that distance. You might have made better time if you had waited with those solders," he said.

"But we didn't. So, we need to call Scott," Rogue said annoyed as she glared at him. God, did she want to go off on him, but Kitty was standing right next to her. "So, can I please use your phone? Or your car. I really don't care which. I just wanna go home," she said.

"My car?" he asked with a chuckle. "How very forward of you, Anna. Assuming that I would trust you with such a valuable possession," he said smirk. Her hands bailed at her sides.

"We both know that you don't give two shits about that car. It's just a hunk of metal. You'd dismantle it in a second if ya needed to. And as for being forward; you're the one who likes to take liberties they ain't entitled to," she said attempting to keep her voice civil. "This afternoon you stood on the _sidelines_ and watched as _we_ fought those soldiers. You could have stepped in and ended that fight at any time. _Instead_ you choose to trust _us_ with it's outcome. And you know what? Kitty ended up saving your son's _life _while you stood by and did nothing. So, I'm I being a little forward? Maybe," she said as she crossed her arms over her chest. She watched a smirk spread across his face.

"And ya know what?" Rogue asked annoyed. "I'd like to make another assumption. I don't think that you _want_ to seat in a car with the two of us for hours making awkward small talk. But I know that you're too much of a _gentleman_ to abandon us on the side of the road. So, let me do you _another _favor. I'll borrow your car for the night and drive your son's lifesaver home; safe and sound. So, we can all get on with our lives," she finished. Rogue took a step back from the car as Magneto opened it.

"Well, I have to say, Anna Marie, conversations with you are never _dull_," he said before chuckling. "Drive to the high school and park the car there. I'll have Pietro retrieve it sometime this week. I'm certain you can find a means to contact Mr, Summers from that location," he said.

"Yeah, yeah I know we can," she muttered._ 'I can not believe he's actually going along with this,' _she thought in disbelief.

"Good," he smiled. "Ms. Pride," he said turning his attentions to her. "Thank you. Of course, I could have intervened and levitated the armored truck to safety. But either of you were hardly aware of my presence," he said. Rogue couldn't help but roll her eyes. "And your efforts and bravery are _greatly_ appreciated. Thank you again," he said.

"Hm, you're welcome," Kitty said. Magneto gave Kitty one last nod before he started to float a few inches off the ground.

"Oh and Anna?" he asked as he turned his attention to Rogue.

"Yeah?" she asked with a sigh.

"As always it has been a pleasure speaking with you. However, I would like to point out that the conversation, the one that was on the tip of _both_ of our tongues, that we failed to have tonight is not finished. I have no intention of letting _that_ topic die. But I'm afraid that we must postpone it for another time. Till then, my dear girl," he said with a smile before he flew higher into the air.

Rogue let out a sigh of relief as Magneto flew out of their line of vision.

"You sure this is a good idea?" Kitty asked.

"No, it's a horrible idea. But do you got a better one?" she asked.

"No," she sighed.

"Then let's go home," Rogue sighed. "Before he decides to come back," she added as she walked over to the car.

"You think he might?" Kitty asked worried as she crossed over to the other side of the car.

"Maybe, he's unpredictable. Let's just get the fuck outta here," she muttered as she opened the driver's seat door.

"Okay," Kitty said as she quickly as they both got into the cars. "I didn't think you, like, had your license," Kitty said.

"I don't. Doesn't mean I don't know how to drive," Rogue said as she started to adjust the diver's seat: it was way too far back for her. "Kitty, do ya know how ta work the GPS?" Rogue asked.

"Yeah," she answered as she leaned forward. "My mom has one of these," she said as she fiddled with the G.P.S for a few moments; inputting the high school's address. "Okay, done," she said as Rogue adjusted the mirrors.

"Good," Rogue muttered as she started to drive forward.

"Drive straight on Pine road for eleven-point- five miles," the g.p.s announced.

"It's seven a'clock already," Kitty said in disbelief. "We've been gone _all_ day," she said.

"I know," Rogue agreed sadly. "How long does it say the drive home is?" she asked.

"Oh, man, almost _four_ hours," she said.

"Keep a look out for anyplace that might have a phone," Rogue said. "Although, I don't think we're gonna see one for at least a half hour," she commented.

"Why? Because Magneto said so?" Kitty asked. "Do you like, _really_, believed what he said?" she asked.

"I- I," she started to said. Yes, she did trust him. " I kind've do," she admitted.

"Why?" Kitty asked in disbelief.

_'Because he usually doesn't lie ta me. Because he keeps his promises...because I have to,' _she thought sadly._ 'Because trusting him is the only security I got anymore... Girl, your _security_ just sent you out on an extremely dangerous mission he could've easily done himself. With almost no information that could've helped you along the way for a plan he refused to explain to you,' _she thought annoyed.

"I don't know, Kitty," she said out loud. "I really don't know," she said.


	34. Chapter 33

Okay, so I managed to finish this chapter super fast. But then I felt really conflicted about posting it so fast when I only two reviews for the last chapter. But I love this fic and I love all of you who take the time to read it. But I hope you all understand just how much time I spend on it. So, please show your support by posting a review this chapter! It would really mean a lot to me ^.^

* * *

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Thirty-Three

It turned out to be a forty minute drive before the came to a location that looked opened.

"This is totally the worst idea we have ever had," Kitty said as they both stared at the entrance to Lucky's Bar; the building was shady looking. The small parking lot the were in was fulled with cars and motorcycles. They watched one man stumble out of the front door; he staggered to the side of the street and threw up. "Eww," Kitty exclaimed.

"You wanna just keep driving?" Rogue asked.

"It like ten now. Everything closing and it took us so long to find this place."

"And without Cerbro," Rogue started to say.

"They have no idea where we are," Kitty finished. "No," Kitty sighed. "Everyone's probably super worried about us. We should let them know that we're _alive_," she said.

"Alright, then, let's make this fast," Rogue said as they both got out of the car. Kitty ran around the car and took hold of Rogue's hand. Rogue pressed the lock button on the keys before putting them in her pocket. "I hope they have a phone," Rogue muttered as they walked up to the building hand in hand.

"You- ah you girls wanna," the drunk man laughed.

"Eww," Kitty said again as they both tried to ignore the man and avoid the puddle of bile on the ground.

"Come on," Rogue said as they both walked into the building. They quickly walked past all the pool tables and marched straight up to the bar. "Excuse me," Rogue called out; attempting to get the bar tender's attention. Why did the music have to be so loud?

"Sir," Kitty called out as she waved over at the guy.

"What are two sweet young things like yourself doing in a place like this?" an older man asked them as he came up next to Kitty. Rogue wiped her head around to see the man getting way to close to her roommate.

_'And I thought Max was creepy. At least he doesn't smell like something died,'_ Rogue thought. Kitty quickly stepped towards Rogue. "We're just trying to get that man's attention. Nothing for you to get involved with," Rogue answer.

"You girls lost? I'm real good with directions," he said with a smirk.

"We don't need directions," Rogue said strongly as they both took a step away from the man. "Hello," Rogue shouted out to the bar tender. He glanced at her for a quick moment before he turned back to the glasses of beer he was fulling up.

"Well, I'm sure there's something I can do," the man started to say as he placed his hand on Kitty's shoulder. Kitty gasped as she phased the man's arm went straight through her.

"You girls are muties?" the man said in disbelief as he backed away.

"Mutants?" another man asked as he and a few other men turned their attention towards them.

_'Oh, no,'_ Rogue thought as they became surrounded. "We just wanna use a phone," Rogue said.

"Well, too bad you girls came in here 'cause-" the man started to say before he was stuck on the head with a pool stick.

"Rogue, let's-" Kitty started to say before they both started to run; Kitty phased them through whatever and whoever was in their way. Rogue turned her head around to glance at their protected.

_'Victor?'_ she thought in disbelief as Kitty phased them out of the building. They both ran up to the car as Rogue pulled out the keys. They both gasped as they heard a gun shot from the bar. She pushed the unlock button and they both rushed to get into the car.

"Rogue, hurry up, okay?" Kitty asked scared as Rogue and she put on their seat belts.

"I'm going as fast as I can," she said as she put the keys in the emission.

"Oh my god, that's Sabertooth," Kitty gasped. "What's he doing here?" Kitty asked as Rogue started to car

"Trying to get drunk, what else?" Rogue asked as she started to pull out of the parking space. As she glanced back she saw her father holding onto his bleeding side as he ran towards the car. _'He was shot,'_ she thought. Rogue glanced behind him the bar tender came running out of the bar with a gun. She stopped the car and unlocked the back door.

"Rogue, what are you doing?" Kitty yelled. "You can't let-" Kitty started to say before Sabertooth got into the back of the car.

"Drive," Victor screamed. Rogue pushed the gas petal to the ground and raced down the road.

"Oh, god, _Sabertooth_ is in the car. Sabertooth is with us in_ Magneto's_ car," Kitty said terrified.

"Relax, short stuff, I ain't gonna hurt ya. It's my night off," he said before he groaned. Rogue glanced into her rear view mirror to see Victor clawing into his wound.

"What- what are you doing?" she asked alarmed.

"Don't worry about me. Just drive," Victor ordered before he let out a low grunt. "Rogue, open the window," he ordered.

"Victor, you okay?" Rogue asked as she did what he asked.

"I'll be fine, now, that I got the bullet out," he uttered annoyed as he threw the bullet out the window. "What the hell where you two doing in Lucky's?" he asked.

"We needed a phone," Rogue answered.

"Why- hm- why were you there?" Kitty asked.

"Trying to get drunk, what else?" Victor answered. "Kid, you can slow down now. No one's following us," he said.

"Ya sure?" Rogue asked. She heard sniffing.

"Yeah, I'm sure," he answered. "And why_ are_ we in Magneto's car?" he asked as Rogue decreased the car's speed.

"He let us borrow it," Rogue explained.

"Why the fuck would Magneto let two_ x-men_ borrow his car?" he asked with a laugh. "...You are still with the X-Men, right?" he asked.

"Yeah, I am," Rogue said.

"I ah- saved his son life," Kitty answered.

"Pietro? That little shit?" Victor asked.

"Yeah," Rogue said with a smirk. "That any way to be talking about your boss' son?" Rogue asked with a smile.

"I can take care of myself. I deal with my boss any way I fucking choose. _You_ should be more careful. Almost got yourself killed tonight," he said in his matter-of-fact- tone she'd had to endure as a child.

"Thanks for your concern," Rogue said dryly.

"Hey, watch your tone," Victor warned.

"Or else what? You'll _ground_ me?" Rogue asked annoyed. "Don't ya think you're a little late to pretend you're my father?" she asked in anger.

"What?" Kitty asked quietly; she glanced at her friend for a moment to see Kitty's eyes widened.

"It ain't my fault we haven't talked. You never called," he said.

"What the fuck are you talking about?" Rogue yelled. "I was only ten years old. I was supposed to call you?" she asked in disbelief. "You were the _parent. Y_ou were supposed to call me, or come see me. Fucking anything would've good to know that ya actually gave a shit," Rogue finished.

"I did give a shit. I wrote to you all the fucking time when you were little; on your birthday, for Christmas and shit. I left you phone numbers so you could call me. But you never fucking did," Victor screamed back. "Ungrateful little-"

_'What?'_ Rogue thought as she pressed her foot on the brake; bring them to a short stop. She put the car in park.

"You're just like your mother," he said.

"I am _nothing _like Mystique," Rogue yelled as she turned to face him. "You don't know me. You've haven't known me in over six years because ya haven't been apart of my life-"

"And whose fault is that," he said bitterly.

"I don't know yet. Shut, the fuck, up and let me find out," Rogue shouted before she closed her eyes.

"Rogue, what are you doing?" Kitty asked.

"Yeah, what the fuck are ya doing?" Victor asked. Rogue sighed before opening her eyes. She hated having to explain this.

"I got fragments of both you and Mystique in my mind; and gonna look and see what happened. The only thing_ I _remember is ya all sending Gray ta college and me moving in with Irene-" she tried to explain.

"That home-wreaking cunt," Victor muttered. Rogue felt a surge of anger overtake her.

"That home-wreaking cunt _raised _your childrenwhenever you and Mystique decided that you were too _busy _to be parents; before and after ya all got divorced. So, don't even try and say a bad word about her. She was the _only_ constant person in my life unti-," Rogue screamed.

"I don't have ta take this shit," he yelled as he opened the car door and got out. Rogue got out after him.

"Yeah, just run away," she screamed as he ran off the road and into the wood. "Just leave me like ya always do," Rogue screamed as he ran out of her line of sight. She felt like she was a child again watching both of parent's cars drive away; abandoning her. "...You bastard," she screamed out into the dark; a few tears running down her face. She was fighting to keep control over herself.

"Rogue?" Kitty asked as she felt a hand on her arm. "Do you, like... wanna hug?" she asked uncertainly.

"Kitty, I would _love _a hug right now," Rogue muttered as Kitty moved in front of her.

"Come here," she whispered as she pulled Rogue into a hug. Rogue carefully put her arms around the girl trying to avoid her skin. Rogue let herself cry for a few minutes.

"Kitty, I," she started to say through her tears, "I love ya like a sister... you know that, right?" Rogue asked.

"Yeah, I know that. I love you too, Rogue," Kitty said as she squeezed a little harder.

_'Oh, what I'm I doing?' _she asked herself. "...This is nice but really dangerous. I don't wanna knock ya unconscious" she said as she slipped out of the hug. "Let's just go home," she said as she wiped her face. "No more stops. They'll know where alive when we get home. Which'll happen faster if we just drive," she ranted.

"Okay," Kitty said. "Okay, let's go home," she said with a smile as they both walked back towards the car. "Do you-"

"No, I don't talk about it," Rogue answered quickly as they both got into the car. Their doors closing within seconds of each other.

"Okay, we totally don't have to," Kitty said as she put on her seat belt. "But if you, you know, want to?" Kitty started to ask.

"I know," Rogue said as she put on her seat belt. "Thanks, Kitty," she said as she forced herself to smile at her friend. Rogue glanced down at the steeling wheel. Now all she had to do was put the car back into drive and make the three hour trip to Bayville. But between everything that had happened today she couldn't bring herself to start driving yet

Why did this hurt so much? She had handled worse, right? With Magneto and everything he had put her through she should be able to just brush this off. It's not like this was first was the first time he had abandoned her. This wasn't new.

Rogue closed her eyes as more tears ran down her face.

"It's going to be okay," Kitty said as she put her hand on Rogue's arm again.

"No, it's not," Rogue muttered as she reopened her eyes. "That was the first conversation I've with that man since I was ten, and all we did was- I-" Rogue felt the tears starting to swell up in the corners of her eyes again. "I still don't wanna talk about it," she said quickly.

"Okay, it's just seems like you really_ do_ wanna talk about it," Kitty said.

_'Kitty, you have no idea how much I wish I could tell you,'_ she thought to herself. "If I start talking about this, I- we really need to get home. It's so late now. I can- we can talk later," Rogue said.

"Hey, whatever you want to do, Rogue," Kitty said. Rogue closed her eyes for a moment and taking deep breaths; attempting to clear her mind.

It took her a few minutes but by using a breathing techniques Ororo had taught her she managed to regain her composure.

"Okay... I'm okay," Rogue mumbled before she finally took the car out of park.

* * *

Rogue let out a sigh of relief as she drove past the "Welcome to Bayville" sign. She leaned forward and turned off the G.P.S. She knew her way to the high school from here. Besides the computer's voice had been getting on her nerves. She didn't know how Kitty had been sleeping through it for the past hour.

_'Professor?'_ Rogue thought._ 'Jean?'_ she called out.

She received no answer.

_'I probably ain't close enough to the institute yet,'_ she thought as she turned onto Bayville Ave."Kitty," she called out softly as she reached over and gently shook her arm.

"Rogue?" Kitty muttered.

"Time to wake up, sugar," she said as the placed her hand back on the steering wheel. .

"We home yet?" Kitty muttered before yawning.

"Almost, we've in Bayville," Rogue answered.

"That good," Kitty mumbled sleepily as she turned over in the chair. Rogue smiled.

_'I'll just wake her up when we get there,'_ she thought to herself."Just ten more minutes and we'll be call-' she cut off her own sentence as she saw a red car riding towards her on the opposite side of the road. _'Is that Scott's car?' _she asked herself. As it got closer she saw black strips on the sides of the car. _'Yeah, I'm pretty sure it is,' _she thought as she beeped the horn a few times.

"Ahh," Kitty exclaimed as she opened her eyes fully. "Okay, I'm awake," she said annoyed as Rogue pulled the car over to the side of the road..

"Sorry, Kitty," Rogue said as she got out of the car. She jumped up and down waving at them . Thankfully, Scott took the hint and stopped his car as well.

"Oh," Kitty said surprised as she got out of the car. They watched Storm and Scott jumped out of the car. They ran up to them.

"Rogue? Kitty?" Stormed exclaimed. "Are you both alright?" she asked as she took a good look at them..

"Yeah, we're okay," Kitty answered.

"Thank goodness," Storm said as she let out a sigh of relief.

"Professor?" Scott asked into a communicator.

"Where were you two?" Storm asked.

"It's a really long story," Kitty said. "We had the _craziest_ day," Kitty said.

"Yes, Cyclops?" the Professor voice came through the communicator.

"We found them. Repeat, Storm and I found Shadowcat and Rogue," Scott said.

"We fought the brotherhood, and then Magneto showed up and he was totally creepy," Kitty said.

"Magneto?" Stormed asked alarmed.

"Wait, again?" Scott asked in disbelief as he turned his attention to the Kitty..

"Yeah," Rogue sighed. "I don't think he's given up trying to recruit me yet," she said. "This is actually his car. He let us borrow it," Rogue said. She watched Scott raise an eyebrow. ""Like Kitty said it's a long story. This isn't the first time I've had a run in with Magneto. Scott I'm sure you remember the last time," she said. He nodded. "And I don't really feel like telling it a millions times. Especially, the part about Sabertooth," she said. She watched Storm's eye's widen in fear.

_'Why did I have ta remind myself about that?' _Rogue asked herself in anger. She felt tears forming the corners of her eyes as bits and pieces of the conversation threatened to replay in her mind.

"Rogue, are you okay?" Scott asked.

"No," Rogue answered. "No, I'm not okay," she said as Kitty put her hand on her arm again. "I've been trying not to think about it, too much. And it's worked for the last few hours. Like I said I don't wanna talk about this too much. So, can all the explanations wait until we're in front of Prof, please?" Rogue asked.

"... Very well," the Professor's voice said after a moment. Rogue was monumentally taken by surprise by his response until she looked and Scott's hand and realized he still had his communicator out. "Please get home safe. We will talk then," he said.

"I just-" Rogue started to say. She paused for a moment waiting for Scott to push the button on his communicator again so the Professor could hear her. "I just gottta drive Magneto's car to the high school. It was kind've a condition of borrowing it," Rogue said.

"Storm, take the car there and then fly home. Rogue, Kitty go with Cyclops" the Professor ordered.

"Yes, sir," Scott said into the communicator. "Come on, let's get you girls home," he said before he turned to cross the street. Kitty followed after him.

"Ororo, I'm- I'm sorry," Rogue said as she turned back to glance at her teacher..

"It is alright, child. I am just relied that we found you both unharmed," she said before she got into the car.

"Me too," Rogue muttered as she turned back towards Scott's car.

* * *

They had finally returned to the institute about half past one in the morning. Thankfully, the Professor had shown them some mercy and had allowed them to go to sleep. Rogue laid in bed; despite being exhausted she couldn't fall asleep.

"So, they're okay?" she heard Kurt ask from outside her door.

"Yeah, me and Storm found them earlier," Scott said.

"Good, that's good," Kurt said softly. "Where were they?" he asked.

"I don't know," Scott said. "The Professor said they could explain in the morning. We'll know more then. Come on, let's get some sleep," he said before yawning.

"You're sure they're okay?" Kurt asked.

"Yes, Kurt," the Professor said. "I'm certain that they are fine. It has been a very stressful day. Please go get some sleep," he said. "You can speaking with Rogue in the morning," he added.

"O-okay, Professor," he said.

Rogue closed her eyes; a few tears ran down her face. She felt so guilty about running off like that; about following Magneto's orders.

_'If you hadn't gone along with it then Kurt wouldn't be able ta talk to me tomorrow morning. He wouldn't be able to talk to me_ at all_... If they knew they would understand. I know they would,'_ she thought to herself. _'Prof probably would've done the same thing himself if it meant protecting all of us,'_ she tried to convince herself. _'Sleep, girl, just...just go to sleep,'_ she thought.

"Rogue?" Kitty whispered. "You okay?" she asked.

"I...I don't-," she started to say as she wiped tears away from her face.

"Do you, like, wanna talk now?" Kitty asked.

"Kitty, it's late. We should-" she started to say.

"Rogue, your totally crying your eyes out right now. Do you, like, really think I care about sleep?" she asked. Rogue smiled at that. "Besides it's not like we have to go to school tomorrow. The Professor letting most of us stay home," she said.

"Yeah, 'cause they were up all night looking for us," she said guilt-stricken.

"It wasn't _all_ night," Kitty said.

"Everyone usually in bed by ten," she muttered.

"Rogue, you're being way too hard on yourself. It's not like you're the only one to blame. I could've said no," Kitty pointed out.

_'No, you couldn't of,' _she thought. _'Max, didn't give you that choice,' _she thought both enraged and depressed.

"Hm- so about Sabertooth?" Kitty she asked slowly. Rogue could tell she was being careful about asking that question. "He's your dad?" she asked.

"Yeah," Rogue muttered. "He adopted me when I was, like, four," she told Kitty.

"Him and Mystique, right?" she asked. Rogue nodded.

"That so crazy," she said. "I, like, can't picture those two living together or taking care of kids," she said.

"Yeah, they where both really bad at it," Rogue said. "Well, okay that ain't entirely true. When they wanted ta be good parents they knew what ta do. Raven was pretty good with me when I was really young. She used ta braid my hair and read me stories before I went ta bed. She used to make cookies, like, all the time," Rogue said.

"Mystique baked?" Kitty asked in disbelief.

"I know. If I hadn't of lived through it I wouldn't believe it either," she said with a smirk. "She- she _used_ ta be a good mom," Rogue said sadly.

"What about Sabertooth?" Kitty asked.

"He was kind've a good dad, I guess. Never hit me or anything like that," Rogue said.

"It takes more than that to be a good father," Kitty pointed out.

"Yeah, I know," she muttered.

"Girls?" Storm asked as she opened their door a crack. "It is very late. You should be asleep," she said.

"Sorry," Kitty said as she smiled at Rogue.

"Yeah, sorry," Rogue said as she smiled back.

"Good night," Storm said as she started to close the door again.

"Good night," Kitty said.

"Wait, Ororo?" Rogue asked. Storm stopped her movements

"Yes?" she asked as their eyes made contact.

"I just wanted to say thank you for all the meditation stuff you've been teaching me," she said.

"We've only had one session," Storm pointed out.

"Yeah, I know but it helped me out today. Helped me keep my emotions in check so I could, ya know, do what I had ta do. Get me and Kitty home safe. Thanks for that," Rogue said.

"You are welcome," she said with a smile. "You still want to have another session next Tuesday?" she asked.

"Yeah, definitely right after school," Rogue said.

"Alright," Storm smiled. "See you both tomorrow," she said.

"Good night," Rogue said as Storm closed the door. "Night, Kitty," Rogue whispered.

"You sure you don't need to talk more?" she whispered.

"Yeah, I'm okay now," she whispered back. "I don't wanna get you anymore trouble," she said.

"Rogue," Kitty whispered.

"_Really_, I'm okay now," Rogue whispered. "We'll talk more tomorrow, okay?" she asked. "Look I ain't crying anymore," she pointed out.

"...Okay," she whispered. "Night."

"Night."


	35. Chapter 34

**There is voting at the end of the chapter; please read!**

Disclaimer; I do not own the dialog from the show or the characters, blah, blah, blah, so on and so on, etc, etc, etc.

Please enjoy! :)

* * *

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Thirty-Four

At a little past noon the next day Rogue and Kitty stood in front of the Professor and Scott. They had just spent the last hour explaining everything that had happened the day before.

"Just blame me," Rogue said. "I dragged Kitty into it," she said.

"No, I went along. It just happened so fast and we found ourselves involved and," Kitty said sadly.

"And then everything just sort of blew up in our faces," Rogue finished.

"Well, your judgment was pretty lame," Scott said with a smile.

"However, your motives were not," Professor Xavier said. "I do applaud you girls for taking the initiative but please understand that it is simply impossible for us to deal with every problem that pops up. We have lives to lead, school to attend," he said.

"And detention this Saturday," Scott said with a smirk.

"What?" both her and Kitty exclaimed.

"I'm afraid, principal Kelly isn't cutting you _any_ sack for skipping out on sixth period," he said with a smile.

"I knew it, I knew it," Kitty said with anger before she stormed out of the room. One detention was going to be the only consequence to their actions yesterday? And in exchange her family gets to keep living in their home. Rogue couldn't help but smile.

"We're back," Logan said as he and Storm entered the room.

"And?" the Professor asked.

"We got two trucks. They ain't much but if something like this happens again" Logan started to say.

"We will have more than one means of transportation," Charles finished relieved.

"I got a pretty good deal on a new bike too," Logan added with a smile.

"What happened to your old one?" Rogue asked.

"One of Magneto's guys trashed it a few days ago," he said bitterly. "Some _invitation_," he said annoyed. Rogue and Scott looked at each other confused.

"What invitation?" Scott asked.

"Magneto sent one of his new guys, the metal one, to give the x-men an invitation to join him," Logan answered.

"Huh? And then he comes to Rogue with the same offer," Scott said.

"Well, no, he didn't actually ask this time," Rogue said. Professor raised an eyebrow. "I mean, it was _implied._But that's always implied while we're talking. There's kind've this standing offer to join him," she said.. "But, yeah, this time he didn't ask. He just said that we were gonna have a conversation in the future where he was gonna ask me again," she finished.

"Would you please tell me Magneto's exact words to you on the subject?" the Professor asked.

"Fine," she sighed. "As always it has been a pleasure speaking with you. However, I would like to point out that the conversation, the one that was on the tip of both of our tongues, that we failed to have tonight is not finished. I have no intention of lettingthat topic die. But I'm afraid that we must postpone it for another time. Till then, my dear girl," she recited quickly.

"The endearment alone is enough to cause me to worry," Charles said quietly. "Where there any others?" he asked.

"No, just my name," she answered. The Professor nodded as he eyes grew distance; he was clearly deep in thought.

"I don't get it," Logan says. "Magneto sends one of his henchmen to invite all of the X-Men to join him," Logan started to say. "But he shows up personally to tell Rogue that he's going to show up personally _again_to invite her. Kid, why's he signaling you out?" he asked.

_'Cause he wants to have sex with me,'_ she thought before she made eye contact with the Professor; she did not want to explain that to Logan. "Prof?" she said calling for his attention. It took a moment but he did look up at her. "You get why he's going to all this trouble, right?" she asked.

"Yes, I understand Magneto's motives, Rogue," he answered. "Do you?" he asked.

"Probably better than you do," Rogue replied. Charles nodded at her.

"Would someone mind explaining them to the rest of us?" Logan asked annoyed.

"Of course," Charles said as he turned to look up at Logan. "After the incident in the Sahara desert Magneto realized that it was only because of Rogue's abilities that we were able to locate him. As a result he started to look into Rogue and her past; along the way he developed the desire to have her by his side. He has been attempting to recruit her ever since," Charles explained.

"Since when?" Logan asked. "Magneto's asked you before this?" he asked looking up at Rogue; concern all over his face.

"Yeah, hm... He asked twice now. It's -ah," she had to think about it for a moment. _'We met at the cafe middle of February, so,' _she thought "It's been a little over five weeks," Rogue said. _'It's only been five weeks? God, feels like it's been a year,'_ she thought to herself.

"Five weeks," Logan exclaimed. "Chuck, when were you planning to tell us?" Logan asked annoyed.

"Honestly, Logan, I did not realize this was still an issue until yesterday. I believed that Magneto had accepted Rogue last refusal and had moved on from his desire to have her. Clearly, that is not the case. Now, we must take the proper precautions," he said. Rogue felt a surge of anger overtake her.

"What precautions?" Rogue asked irate. "We live in an underground_ metal _fortress. There ain't much that can be done when we're literally surrounded by_ his_ weapon of choice," Rogue pointed out. She watched all three of their eyes widen in fear. She instantly regretted her words; she had worked so hard to avoid this. To keep them safe and unaware of the real danger they were in. She was the only one who was supposed to realize the risk of having any amount of metal at hand; not them. Why did she have to let her emotions get the better of her?

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to scare anyone," she said softly.

"No, it's alright, Rogue. These things need to be said," Charles said.

_'They do?' _she asked herself. _'Well, if he wants to talk then...' _she thought "Hm... well, then speaking of things that need to be said," she started to say.

"Yes," Charles asked curiously.

"When we rebuild the mansion you're not gonna include Defcon 4 again, right? I mean, if Magneto decided to attack the institute head on, to me, it just seems, that having retractable metal plating over every window and exit on the building is like asking Magneto to come over and utilize them," she said. She watched the Professor took a deep breath.

"...I agree," he said

"And I was also thinking that when you get around to making more communicators that we could model them off the technology in the XM-Velocity. So, that Magneto wouldn't be able to destroy it with a signal thought. I mean, that day at the cafe if I had just had a couple of more seconds to talk to you before Magneto ripped the thing out of my hand I_ probably _would've been able to tell you where I was," she explained.

"Again, I agree. I will talk to Hank about what we can do when he is finished with his current work," he said.

"You have clearly put some thought into these suggestions, Rogue," Storm said.

"Yeah, just a little. I been meaning to talk to ya all about this stuff. I don't know, it just never seemed like a good time," she explained.

"I understand," Charles said with a nod. "Rogue, do you have any other suggestions?" he asked. She smiled.

"Yeah, if you had blueprints of the institute and it's security system then maybe you and me could look over them and maybe I could point out some things that we could change to make the institute a little safer," she said.

"I believe that is an _excellent_idea," he said with a smile. "Ororo, do you know where the plans for the institute are?" he asked as he looked up at her.

"Yes, Charles, they are in the the foreman's trailer," she answered.

"Would you please go get them and meet us in sub-level seven?" he asked. Storm nodded with a smile.

* * *

Ten minutes later, Rogue, Storm, Logan, and the Professor where in sub-level seven. All of them were standing around the table. Storm had just laid out the blueprints and now Rogue was studying them.

"You got any experience reading these things?" Logan asked.

"Yeah, Mystique decided the Brotherhood should be able to understand blueprints so she spent a week going over this stuff in her office. It was apart of our after school education," Rogue explained.

"So, the brotherhood boys are able to rea-" Storm started to say. Rogue laughter cut her off.

"I said that it was _apart _of our education. Not that Toad or Freddy _actually learned _anything. They were too busy turning their hand outs into paper airplanes," she said with a smirk. "Lance might've gotten a little out of it. But it was pretty much just and me and Pietro who were paying attention," she explained.

"I see," Charles said.

"So, what kinda changes we talking about here?" Logan asked.

"I don't know yet. I need more than a few seconds," Rogue answered. They all looked up as Mr. McCoy entered the room with a stack of papers in his hand.

"It's an orphanage," Hank said as he walked up to the table.

"What's an orphanage?" Rogue asked as she glanced up at the Professor.

"Nothing for you to worry about, Rogue," Charles said. "Hank, we'll talk about it later," he said. Mr. McCoy nodded as he placed the paper on the table. Rogue glanced at the papers. Her eyes instantly scanned over the words 'Amelia Voght's Home for Wayward Children'.

_'I know that name. Where do I know that name from?'_ Rogue asked herself. Rogue gasped as she felt her mind pull her in.

**She saw a flash of a woman with brown hair and eyes smiling down at something. The woman was spinning around in a circle. She was going so fast; Rogue could barely make out the scenery behind her; it was all a green and blue bur. It seemed as through she was holding something in her arms. It was only when she heard a baby laughing that she realized the woman was holding her. **

"**Ameila," a familiar female voice called out from the distance. "Dinner time," she announced as the woman stopped spinning. **

"**Do you hear that, Anna Maire? It's time to eat," Ameila said as she tickled her. Rogue felt herself laugh as she was carried towards a large brown and red house. "Are you hungry?" she asked with a smile. **

"Rogue," Logan called out. Her eyes shot open as she realized that she was in Logan's arms; he had one arm around her waist holding her up. The other was around her shoulder; he was shaking her.

"I'm- I'm back," Rogue said; Logan stopped shaking.

"Rogue, are you alright?" the Professor asked concerned.

"Yeah, I... I think so," she muttered as Logan led her to one of the chairs. She sat down and closed her eyes for a moment as she took deep breaths. The memory hadn't been a traumatic one; it only took her a moment to recover. "Can I please get a glass of water?" she asked as she opened her eyes.

"I'll only be a minute," Mr. McCoy said as he quickly turned and left the room. Rogue re-looked at the memory.

_'Yeah, yeah that was _Irene's_ voice,' _she thought to herself in disbelief.

"What the hell was that?" Logan asked.

"It was a flash back," Rogue answered. "I've had these before," she said.

"Often?" Charles asked.

"Not lately. I kind've thought I had control over it," she muttered. She glanced over what she had thought before her mind pulled her in. "I guess I do. I was asking myself where I'd had heard that name before," she explained.

"What name?" Storm asked.

"Amelia Voght," Rogue answered as she pointed to the papers Mr. McCoy had left behind. "A woman named Amelia took care of me when I was young," she said. "...Can I see those?" Rogue asked; referring to the papers.

"I have not even looked at them myself yet," Charles explained as he went to pick up the papers; as he lifted them off the table a brochure fell out of the pile. Rogue instantly recognized the house on the cover.

"That's where I was," Rogue exclaimed as she pointed at the picture. "I used to _live_ in that house," Rogue said. Charles picked up the brochure and glanced at it for a moment before he handed it to Rogue.

"Are you certain?" Charles asked. Rogue took a long hard look at the paper.

"Yeah, I'm sure," she said as she nodded. "Must've been before I was adopted," she guessed as Mr. McCoy reentered the room. "Thank you," Rogue said as he handed her a bottle of water. She opened the top and took a sip.

"Rogue, are you alright?" Mr. McCoy asked.

"Yeah, I'm okay, now," she answered before she took another sip. "Prof, why are you looking into this place?" Rogue asked. He glanced up at her from the papers.

"Rogue, at this moment I would prefer to keep that information to myself. Please trust that I will tell you when the time is right," he said. Rogue raised an eyebrow at his response.

"You realize after this I gonna go back to my room and learn everything I can about the place, right?" she asked.

"How?" Mr. McCoy asked. "You don't have a computer in there," he said confused.

"I don't need one. I lived there for at least a year, I think... maybe more. Most of the answer are probably already in my head," she explained. The Professor stared at her for a moment. "What?" she asked annoyed. "It's _my_ past," she said.

"Very well," Charles sighed defeated. "Ororo?" he asked.

"Last night before I returned home I looked at Magneto's g.p.s' stored memory. This location was the only saved destination," Storm informed her.

"Right, we were supposed to find this," Rogue said quietly.

"_That_ has yet to be determined," Charles said strongly. "You said yourself that borrowing the car was _your _idea, not Magneto's." he pointed out.

"Okay, that's true, but Eric ain't that careless. Maybe if there were a few other places too, but one location is just too damn suspicious," Rogue said. _'Or maybe that where he sent Cargril,'_ she thought. _'That would explain why there was only one that location in the memory. Max always knows where he's going,' _she thought.

"Rogue?" Charles called out.

"Sorry, got lost in a thought," she said quickly.

"I do agree with you that it is suspicious, but I am not willing to _automatically_ jump to that conclusion. We need to gather more facts," he said.

"Should I go get started on that?" Rogue asked.

"I believe that there was something else you were doing," Charles said.

"Oh, right," she said as she turned her attention back to the blueprints on the table. She studied them for a few minutes; her instructors stood by in silence as she did so. "...Is there any way we can have the weapons in front each have a separate power source; instead of having them all linked together?" Rogue asked.

"What would that achieve?" Mr. McCoy asked.

"Let's say Magneto wanted to get on the grounds without anyone knowing he was here, with the way it's set up now, all he'd have to do is send out a electric pulse to short out the generator powering them," Rogue explained.

"Assuming he knows where the generator is," Mr. McCoy offered.

"Generators give out a lot electrify. If he was looking for it it'd stick out like a sore thumb," she said. "But if they were _individually_ powered and made out of non-metal materials then it would be more difficult for him to locate them," she said. "And if he can't find them," she started to say.

"Then our defenses have a better chance of defeating him," Charles finished with a nod.

_'Or letting some one else know that he's here,'_ she thought.

"Hank?" Charles asked.

"I'll see what I can do," Hank said.

"Perhaps we should take the same precaution with our alarm system as well," Storm said.

"I agree," Charles said as she took another sip of the water.

"...Well, that's all I got," Rogue said as she put the top back on the water bottle.

"Rogue, that was more than enough," Charles said. "Thank you," he smiled. She smiled back as she stood up.

"Well, I'll see ya all later. I've got some stuff to look at," Rogue said.

"Rogue, please be careful," Charles said.

"All I'm doing is looking for answers," she said.

"But you may not like what you find... Rogue if you like company during this search of yours I would be happy to accompany you," he offered.

"Thanks Prof, but I gotta feeling it gonna get pretty personal. Especially, with what Victor implied," she said.

"Sabertooth said something to you?" he asked his eye widened in fear. "You didn't mention this earlier. Should I be concerned?" he asked.

"I don't know yet... I mean, I don't think so. If it's what I think it is then I probably just have another reason to hate Mystique... maybe Irene too," she added sadly.

"_Please_ keep me informed?" Charles asked. She nodded.

"I'll check in with you tomorrow morning, okay?" she asked.

"I would appreciate that, thank you," he said before she walked out of the room.

She paused outside the hall as she heard Logan ask, "Why's she calling Sabertooth by his first name?" Logan asked.

"It is not the same reason she calls Magneto's by his, is it?" Storm asked.

"No, no," Charles said quickly. "Not the same reason, at all," he said.

"What reason?" Logan asked irate. Professor Xavier sighed.

"Both of them are very complicated situation. _Separate,_ yet equally complicated," he said.

"Chuck, I'm worried about that girl," Logan said.

"As am I," Storm said.

"I believe we all are," Mr. McCoy added.

_'Good, they should be worried,'_ she thought.

"And I ain't liking all these secrets," Logan said annoyed. "There's stuff you ain't telling us. Stuff Rogue ain't telling us," Logan said.

"I know, Logan. I will know more when she and I talk tomorrow. I am asking you to trust me and dispite her silence on certain matters I do trust, Rogue," Charles said strongly.

"Charles, no on is saying you should not," Storm said.

"_Does_ that need to be stated?" Hank asked.

"No," Charles said strongly. "I saw first hand her reaction to Magneto's offer to join him. He offered her companionship, answers about herself and her powers. But she said no to him because of a deep love and loyalty she has for all of us. The people she come to considers her family. I have complete faith in Rogue. I trust her with my life," he said. Rogue couldn't help but smile. "So, you can get in the elevator now," he said loudly. She blushed with embarrassment. He was a telepath; of course he knew she was still there.

"Sorry," she said as she popped her head back into the room. "I didn't mean to easedrop. I'll go now," Rogue said as she turned away.

"Rogue," Charles called out. She turned back to face him; their eyes making contact. "I meant ever word I just said. I know you have your reasons for not sharing the things you keep to yourself. That does not stop me from trusting you," he said. She smiled.

"Prof, half the time, I mean, when it comes to Raven and Victor, I don't like talking about them because it's too painful," she said. She let out a sigh. "Logan, reason I call Victor by his first name is cause I refuse to call him dad," she told him. She watched his eyes widen. _'Please don't hate me, please don't hate me,'_ she thought.

"He's your father?" Hank asked in disbelief.

"Adopted," she said. "There's no blood there. Just a lot of broken promises," she said before she glanced up at Logan. _'Please say something,'_ she thought. "Logan," she asked.

"Kid, why didn't you tell us before now?" Logan asked.

"I-" she started to say.

"Logan, Rogue told me about her connection to both Sabertooth and Mystique the very night she moved into the institute. She was not hiding anything," he said. "As she said, talking about her parents is a painful subject. That was clear from the very first time conversation we had. Thus, I have have refrained from asking Rogue to speak about them unless it was necessary. Aside from all of that, I believe we should take Rogue's suggestions to heart," he said changing the subject.

"See ya all at diner," Rogue said using this as her chance to leave.

Hank, how do you think we could-" Charles started to before the elevator door closed. She could talk to Logan later. She should give Logan a little time to absorb the information she had told him. After all she hated it when Magneto expected her to talk right after he had told her something shocking.

She let out a sigh of relief. After those changes were made to the security system the institute might actually be safe from Magneto.

_'At least, he might not be able to sneak into my room without being seen,' _she smiled.

It took a second before it dawned on her._ 'Oh, god, he's gonna be pissed. What the fuck did I just do?' _she asked her panicked as she took a few deep breaths. She quickly opened the bottle of water she was still carrying and took a large sip. _'Why did I think that was a good idea?'_ she asked herself. _'No, I- no I don't think it's enough to make him take me from here. I, no, I didn't destroy the fascade. If anything I reaffirmed Prof's belief that the institute is safe... Max, should. He should be thanking me really,'_

_'Yeah, like that's gonna happen,' _she thought as she rolled her eyes. _'Besides_, i_t's done,' _she thought as she took a deep breath. 'I_ can't change it. Neither will he, not after all the materials are brought. Not after they change the blueprints. I just gotta hope he doesn't realize those changes were my idea... Well, I just won't tell him,' _she thought as the doors to the elevator opened up. She quickly walked into her room and let herself collapse onto her bed. Thankfully, she was alone. She loved Kitty but she didn't feel like talking right now.

'_I should just concentrate on what I_ can_ control,'_ she thought before she drew herself into her memory.

* * *

Voting time!

Are you enjoying these plot points about Rogue's past;** yes or no? **(If you really want to help me out please explain why you choosing the answer you do)

If most people vote yes, then I will continue the next chapter as I have planned.

If most people vote no, then I will sum up what Rogue finds out during her search and get back to Magneto within a thousand words or so.

Before I spent time writing out all the flashbacks I wanted to know if people want to read them Thank you in advance for the feedback. :)


	36. Chapter 35

Thank you for voting! Okay, you guys want flashbacks; you got them!

Please enjoy! :)

* * *

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Thirty-Five

Rogue had been searching through her memories for the last four hours now. Unfortunately for her, one years old babies rarely pay attention to what the adults around them are talking about. Her younger self spent most of her time staring at whatever had caught her interest, or trying to get her hands on something she was not supposed to touch, nevertheless put in her mouth.

After an hour of only catching a few words here and there she had jumped ahead in her mind to the age of two. Where she found her younger self to, at least, be listening in on the conversations. At the time she had barely understood what was being spoken; till grasping to learn her first language. But each and every word she had paid attention to was stored perfectly in her memory; ready and waiting to be analyzed. She felt herself let out a gasp as she saw spotted Magneto in one of her memories. She focused in on it; choosing to relive it completely.

**Rogue sat on Ameila's lap in the kitchen of Ameila Vought's Home For Wayward Children, half eating, half playing with a small bowl of Cheerios in front of her. Her younger self glanced across the table at the other adults present; Irene Alder, and Magneto.**

"**Thank you for coming on such short notice," Ameila said. **

"**Of course, Ms, Vought. Destiny, what do you have for me?" Magneto asked. **

"**I detest the code names, as well you know. If you prefer being called Magneto that is your right. But please call me, Irene," she said. Her younger self happened to glance up at Magneto; she recognized annoyance in his expression.**

"**My apologizes, Irene," Max said. "It will not hap-" he said. Her younger self was now staring at Magneto's hair; she had never seen anyone else with white in their hair likes hers. Ameila adjusted herself in the seat; distracting Rogue. She glanced up at Irene who was now speaking. **

"**-Mortimer Toynbee. His mutation will manifest early." she said. **

"**How early?" Magneto asked. **

"**Twelve," Irene answered. **

"**Thirteen," Rogue counted quietly. Ameila hushed her. **

"**-old is he now?" Magneto asked.**

"**One," Irene said.**

"**Two, three, four," Rogue whispered. **

"**Shh," Ameila hushed as she handed her a Cheerio. Rogue took it out of Ameila's fingers and ate it. **

"**-His parents have abandon him," Irene said. "He resides in an orphanage in York.".**

"**I'll go and retrieve him myself," he said. "Of course, we'll have to change the boy's name," he said. **

"**Is that really necessary?" Amelia asked as she handed Rogue another piece of cereal; she ate it with a smile. **

"**The legal process to bring him to America in daunting to say the least. Besides what explanation could we have for our desire to transfer him from one orphan-" Magneto started to say before Rogue saw a butterfly, fly across the window. She gasped as she reached out; wanting to grab it.**

_'Wait a minute,'_ Rogue thought as she paused the memory. _'Is that a camera?'_ she asked as she glanced at the window. Out of the corner of her eyes she saw a camera in the top corner of the room; near the window._ 'What kinda orphanage has cameras in the kitchen?'_ she asked.

She resumed the memory.

**Ameila shifted her to the other side of her lap. "With a name such as Mortimer; the boy might thank us some day for riding him of it," Magneto said with a smile before Rogue reached out for another cheerio. **

"**-Todd Tolansky will be his name," Irene said. **

"**I'll have Odekirk draw up the documents," Magneto said. "Todd will be here by next Wednesday," he said. **

"**Thursday," Rogue shouted before she ate another cheerio. Both Magneto and Irene stared at her surprised.**

"**Sorry," Ameila laughed. "I've been teaching her the days of the week," Ameila said. **

"**Shouldn't one start with numbers or the abc's?" Magneto asked. No sooner had the words left his mouth before Rogue was singing the Abc song. **

"**I swear, I had barely sang it twice before she was singing with me," Ameila said over Rogue's singing. **

"**H, i, j, k l, m, n, o, pee," Rogue sang loudly. **

"**Shh," Ameila hushed. Rogue stopped singing and glanced up at her caretaker. "Anna Marie," Ameila said in her strictest tone. "The adults are talking. You know what to do when the adults are talking, right?" Ameila asked. Rogue nodded before she put her finger against her lips. **

"**Shh," Rogue hushed.**

"**Good girl, Anna," Ameila said before kissing her cheek; Rogue giggled at the contact. **

"**Ameila," A voice shouted from the other room. "Could you give me a hand?" she asked. The sound of young children laughing emulated from the hallway. **

"**Would you please excuse me for a moment?" Ameila asked. **

"**Of course," Magneto said. **

"**Irene would you-" Ameila started to ask as she stood up. **

"**Allow me," Magneto said as he stood up and reached out for Rogue. **

"**Thank you," she said as she handed Rogue to Magneto. Ameila left the room as Magneto sat down, placing Rogue on his lap. **

* * *

Rogue pulled out of the memory out of breath. After all the times she had sat down on that man's lap she would never had guessed that the first time was when she was a child.

"Fucking creepy," she muttered.

"What was?" Kitty asked. She glanced up to see Kitty sitting on her bed.

"Magneto, who else?" Rogue asked.

"What he'd do now?" Kitty asked.

"When I was like two I was sitting on his lap," Rogue explained before she felt a shiver run down her spine._ 'Why the fuck would he want me to see that?'_ she asked herself. .

"What's so creepy about that?" she asked.

_'Oh, right, Kitty doesn't know,' _she thought. "I've sat on his lap since then," she said.

"When?" Kitty asked.

"At the cafe...while we were kissing," Rogue muttered.

"Ew," Kitty exclaimed. "You were kissing Magneto? _Gross_," Kitty said. "He's, like, ancient," Kitty said. Rogue couldn't bring herself to say anything; she just laid back down.

"Hey, Rogue?" Kitty called. She glanced over at her roommate. "Do you wanna come watch tv with me and Kurt?" Kitty asked.

"Maybe after dinner," Rogue said. "I gotta finish watching this memory," she said.

"The one where you're sitting on Magneto's lap?" she asked.

"Yup," she sighed.

"Why?" she asked confused. "No one's forcing you," she said. That's true, no one was.

"I know. It's just that him and Irene were- They were talking about something important. Something I think I need to find out about," Rogue said.

"Why?" Kitty asked.

"Because it's my life," she exclaimed. "Wouldn't you wanna know?" Rogue asked.

"Maybe," Kitty said. "I mean, I guess it would, like, depend on what I was asking," she said. "What _are_ you asking?" she asked.

"I don't know... I- no, I do. Irene raised me for five years and all that time she said that she cares about me. I guess I just wanna know if she was telling the truth," she said.

"... So, I'll see you at dinner?" Kitty asked. Rogue nodded. Kitty turned to leave the room.

"Kitty?" Rogue called out. "Could you come and get me when it's time for dinner? I just gonna get lost in my own head again," she said.

"Sure," Kitty smiled before she left the room.

"Maybe, I should just stop,"she said as she closed her eyes. "... Whatever they're gonna talk about next- it can't be worse than what I've already been through, right?" she asked herself. Rogue took a deep breath before she pulled the memory back up.

**Magneto placed Rogue on his lap. **

"**Speaking of children who need to be placed. Do you know who this little girl should be living with?" Magneto asked. **

"**My visions tell me that the time is not right to remove Rog- Anna Marie from this locati-" Irene said.**

"**What was it you were about to call her?" he asked.**

"**I was not-" Irene started to say.**

"**Irene, do not play games with me. What were you about to call her?" he asked strongly. **

"**Rogue," Irene sighed. "Later in life she will be known mainly as Rogue," she said.**

"**You can tell me that fact, but not who her parents will be? Irene, you are withholding information," he said. Rogue noticed the table was shaking. **

"**Magneto, you**_** need**_** me. What good are your threats?" she asked. "I will tell you when the time is right for the child," Irene said.**

"**Ameila is clearly attached to the girl. This relocation should happen sooner, rather then later. I do not wish to lose the caretaker of this facility for the sake of one child. Perhaps she should go live with her Aunt Carrie? I'm certain the woman would be overjoyed to learn that Anna Marie is still alive," Magneto said.**

Rogue paused the memory_. 'I have an Aunt?' _she asked in disbelief. She shook off disbelief as she restarted the memory.

"**Magneto, you know full well why we can not allow that. You know what I saw. Her father _moles_-" Irene started to say as Rogue reached out for the bowl of cheerios. Magneto leaned forward and brought the bowl closer.**

"**Owen would be dealt with," he started to say as he handed Rogue a piece of cereal. "Yet I ask-"**

"**Thank you," Rogue whispered as she looked up at him. He smiled down at her.**

"**You're very welcome, Anna. Now, the adults are talking so?" he asked. **

"**Shh," she said as she put her finger on her lips. She stopped making the sound before she ate the piece of cereal; keeping her finger on her lips as she chewed. Rogue watched him turn his attention back to Irene.**

"**Yet, I ask, why have I not taken this course of action?" Magneto asked. "You have not uttered a bad word against her Aunt. Why should she not be raised by family?" Magneto asked. **

_'Yeah, why the fuck shouldn't I be raised by family?' _Rogue asked.

"**Because the-" Irene started to say.**

"**Wait," Magneto said. After a moment Ameila walked back into the room. **

"**Thank you," Ameila said as she took Rogue from Magneto.**

"**My pleasure, Ameila," he said. **

"**I'll just be back in a minute. It's time for her nap," Ameila said with a smile. **

"**Please do not rush on my account," Magneto said as Ameila walked out of the room with Rogue in her arms; and away from the conversation. **

**Rogue continued to view the memory hoping that she might overhear just a few more words that could help her understand.**

_'Damn it,'_ Rogue thought as she pulled out of the memory. _'They didn't want Ameila to hear anything. Why were they keeping all that from her?' s_he asked herself.

"Rogue?" Kitty asked. "You okay?" she asked.

"Yeah, I guess so," she muttered.

"It's time for dinner," she said.

"Thanks, Kitty," Rogue said as she sat up.

"Yeah, anytime," Kitty said with a smile."You sure you're okay?" she asked again.

"No, I guess, I'm not," she admitted as she stood up.

"What did you find?" Kitty asked as they left the room.

"I'm not sure, yet," Rogue said the walked down the hall. "I gotta spend more time looking at it," she said. _'I probably got it from Max's point of view too,' _she thought as she and Kitty got into the elevator. _'After diner,'_ she thought as the doors closed.

* * *

Rogue had eaten her dinner as fast as she could without getting stared at. She wanted to get back into her head. She had too many questions and not nearly enough time to explore for the answers. The one thing she was thankful for was that now she was back to searching within her own mind. As she had been two months ago searching for gaps in Magneto's memory to account for both his and Logan memories of Max's escape from the camps. It was nice not having to rely on another, namely Magneto, to tell her the truth.

Rogue stood up with her plate; pulling out her chair she started to head towards the kitchen.

"Rogue," Charles said.

"Yeah?" Rogue sighed as she turned back to look at him.

"Please wait for me in the kitchen," he ordered gently.

"Fine," she sighed.

"Rogue's in trouble," she heard Bobby taunt from behind her; she rolled her eyes as she got to the door.

"Mind your own business, and eat your food," Logan ordered. Rogue smiled as she went through the door. Maybe everything would be okay between them.

She walked over to the sink and rinsed off her dish.

"Rogue," Charles said as he came up behind her. "Are you alright?" he asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine," she said as she put her dish and fork in the dishwasher.

"May I ask about your findings?" he asked.

"I thought we said we were gonna do this tomorrow," she said annoyed.

"Yes, we did. Am I not allowed to check in on you?" he asked. "I'm worried, Rogue. That is all," he said. "Should I be?" he asked.

"Probably," she muttered as she say down at the small kitchen table. She sighed. "I have a Aunt," Rogue said. Charles' eyes lite up in surprise. "At least I had one when I was two. I don't know if I've ever met her before or anything. And I have no idea if she's still alive today. I need to look more. I need a last name," she told him.

"I agree, perhaps I can be of assistants? Please allow me to help," he said. Honestly, at this point, she wished she could let him help. But what if he looked at the wrong thing? What if he saw something about Magneto that would cause him to go through with his threats? She sadly shook her head no.

"I know you don't understand why, but this is something I need to do on my own," she said. "I only got like five more hours till I need to go to bed. So, can I please go get started? It took me four hours just to find _that _memory," she told him.

"What memory?" he asked.

"I'll tell you tomorrow morning, okay? Like I said I was gonna," she said annoyed.

"Alright, alright," he said defeated. "Please come and find me if you change your mind," he said.

"Okay," she said before she stood up. "Thanks," she added.

"Your welcome," he said before she headed back to her room.

* * *

After about an hour of searching Rogue, drenched in sweat, sat up on from her bed with a start.

_'No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no,' _she thought in a panic._ 'That can't be right,'_ she thought to herself as she shook her head in disbelief. She had spent an hour looking through Magneto's memory trying to find the rest of the conversation she had been taken away from.

_'Why isn't it there?'_ she asked herself panicked. She had glanced through almost fives years of Max's life. There wasn't one memory of this location in his mind. _'Why isn't anything from Ameila's in his memory?' _she asked herself.

Of course, she knew the answer. She wasn't meant to see it. Ameila's Home for Wayward Children was something that Max had intended to keep from her.

_'Oh, god what the fuck do I do now?'_ she asked herself. _'Tell, Prof?'_ she asked herself. '_But if he meant to hide it and if I tell Prof all about it... what will he do?' _she asked herself concerned. _' ...I ain't telling him about anything from the facade and we haven't talked about this place so... yeah, he can't take me from here for talking to him. Goes against our deal.'_

_'Shit, I have no idea when I'm gonna see him next,'_ she realized._ 'Could be in a month, could be tomorrow,' _she thought her eyes widening in fear. She took a deep breath. She couldn't focus on that. When he planning to come back for her was out of her control. If she let herself think about too much she would drive herself insane.

_'Have ta think about what I _can _control,'_ she thought to herself. _'Toad was there,' _she realized. _'Maybe he might've over heard something,'_ she as she laid back down. She closed hers eyes and pulled up fragment.

She paused for a moment. The last time she had searched through Toad's memories Magneto had shown up; keeping her from being able to tell anyone anything. A fear fulled shiver ran up her spine.

_'Relax, girl, last time Max was _living_ in the institute. He was making sure that no one realized Prof was gone. He had _eight, fucking,_ telepaths in Bayville. Course he knew where I were looking. But he ain't here now,'_ she thought.

_'How can you be certain he is not present?' _A dark voice in the back her mind asked. She gasped at the voice.

_'Cause he- cause he would've stopped me by now,' _she replied as she took a deep breath._ 'There is no way in hell he would've let me find out about Ameila's and about my Aunt Carrie, and my father's name if he- if he was here. He would've pulled me out've my thoughts hours ago,'_ she thought as she felt relieved. Her logic made sense; at least to her.

After another deep breath she pulled herself into Toad's memory; searching...

* * *

As it turned out, Toad paid even less attention to the adults then she did. Even at age six he was barely taking in anything those around him were saying; even when the were talking _to_ him. She had only found out two interesting things while searching in his memories; Lance had been a resident of Ameila's and there were a lot more cameras in and around the house. She had taken the time to glance at each and everyone she saw; noting their locations. After an hour or so in Toad's mind she was almost certain she knew where they all were.

_'Wonder if Freddie was there too,'_ she thought as she pulled up Lance's fragment.

* * *

Turns out Blob had lived at Ameila's but only for about a month.

_'So, that was no help,' _she thought annoyed; lamenting the half hour she had wasted.

Worst news of all was that after 1990 Magneto rarely visited the place. There was one trip he made in 1993 but she was already with Raven and Victor; and neither Todd or Lance hadn't overheard everything of interest.

_'God, this is frustration. Three hours of my life gone and what the fuck have I got ta show for it?' _she asked herself. _'Great, so what do I tell Prof?' _she asked herself. _'What do I know?'_ she asked herself. _'I have an Aunt named Carrie and my birth father's name is Owen,' _she thought.

As she had watched the memories she had seen so many different children; but no one used last names. Well accept forAnna Vought; Ameila's adopted daughter. But aside from her no one used last names and no one talked about what the kids powers were going to be. She wasn't even sure if most of the kids knew they were going to be mutants.

_'Toad's real name is Mortimer Toynbee. Reason his name was changed is cause Magneto kidnapped him from an orphanage,' _she thought in disbelief. _'If my dad was still alive then I was kidnapped too because Irene told Magneto about me,'_ she realized. She took a deep breath as tears ran down her eyes. _'Why? Couldn't I go live him and my Aunt? Because I _had_ to be raised by Raven and Victor? So they could abandon me? So I would have ta go live with Irene, so I would have ta be in the brotherhood?' _she asked.

_'God, how much does Irene know?' _she asked. _'She knew I was going go by Rogue. Does she know about all this? About Magneto blackmailing me?'_ she asked in disbelief as tears continued to flow. _'Why isn't she doing anything to help me? God, why isn't _Graydon_ doing anything to help. He's knows too. He knows what Magneto's putting me through,' _she cried. _'The only people who care about me have no idea what's going on. It's- it's,'_ she thought as tears ran down her face.

"It's not fair," she muttered. She glanced up at the clock on the night stand. "I have two hours before I have ta go to sleep," she said as she wiped tears from her face. She took a deep breath "What can I tell Prof?" she asked herself. _'A list of first names would be fucking useless,'_ she thought. _'Only thing that never changed was the cameras... I could draw him blueprints,' _she realized with a smile._ 'Okay, okay, I can do that. I can handle that,' _she thought. "I just gotta find paper big enough," she said as she stood up.

* * *

Rogue sat in sub-level seven. Large papers spread out on the table; she was furiously adding marks here and there. Trying desperately to complete the blueprints of Ameila Voght's home for Wayward Children before someone tried to get her to go to sleep. It was already eleven pm; thankfully since she had told Kitty she didn't want to watch a movie she had been left alone to work.

Rogue glanced up as she saw the Professor enter the room.

_'At least until now,'_ she thought bitterly. She turned back to her work. She had completed the layouts for all the floors and the grounds outside. They only thing left to do was mark the location of each camera in the house she was aware of and ink all the blueprints. She was almost done with the third floor; only a few more cameras.

The Professor opened his mouth to speak.

"I know what time it is," she said strongly cutting off whatever his first statement would have been.

"So, you know you should be in bed," he said gently.

"Can't sleep," she said as she made another mark pointing out a camera on the third floor of the building.

"You are clearly exhausted," he pointed out.

"I'm _not_ going to sleep until I finish this," she said strongly.

"And what is all of this?" he asked concerned as he got closer to the table and her.

"You can't recognize blueprints when you see them?" she asked sarcastically. He sighed.

"Yes, of course. But what are they blueprints of and why can this not wait until tomorrow?" he asked. She stopped a moment; taking a deep breath; fighting back her tears.

"I think you were right," she mumbled.

"About what?" he asked.

"About it being a mistake. I think he fucked up yesterday when he let me borrow his car. I don't think Magneto meant for us to find this place," she said as she marked he last camera on the third floor.

"This is the orphanage?" he asked.

"Yeah," she said with a nod as she pulled the second floor blueprints in front of her. "I'm afraid Prof that when he finds out we know about this place and when he figures out what I could know about this place that he'll do what he can to keep me from telling you or anyone else about it. So, yeah this can't wait until tomorrow. Tomorrow might be too late," she said before she closed her eyes; pulling up imagines of the second floor. "Ten cameras," she muttered as she moved to write down the location of the first one.

"Rogue?" he said concerned. "What use are the position of cameras from what was it ten years ago-"

"Twelve," she corrected.

"Even more to the the point. What use are those going to be? The layout is more than enough. You can stop now," he said gently.

"I got memories from that place from almost a decade, Prof, and not _once_ during that time did a single camera get moved; I _checked_," she said. "I think Magneto assumes that no one was ever be able find out about the place. So, they haven't bothered to change anything and if you ever decide to go there, then you're gonna need to know where this stuff is," she said as she marked down the next camera.

"I appreciate the thought, Rogue, thank you. But-" he started to say.

"Irene used to live here too," she said cutting him off. "Irene, my foster mother," she said as she looked up at him. "I don't know if you know this but Irene's a mutant. She can see the future possibilities of what's gonna happen," she said before she turned back to the blueprint; continuing her work as she explained the situation to him. "Back then, Magneto didn't need a Cerbro unit or anything like that to find mutants. He didn't even have to wait until their mutation manifested. All he had to do was ask Irene who was gonna be one and she pointed them out to him. She told him about _me_; its why I was living there," she said bitterly.

"She told him about _all _the brotherhood's members. I looked into that too. Todd and Lance spent about five years there before they were put into foster care. Freddie a month when his grandmother first lost custody of him. And I lived there for three years before I was adopted," she finished ranting. "Don't you get it. This place is how Magneto's building his army," she explained as she wrote down the location of the last camera on the second floor.

"Rogue, I understand all that-" Charles started to say.

"No, I really don't think you do," she muttered. "You don't understand what's he capable of. None of you do. He hasn't shown anyone how much harm he's willing to do; what means he'll use to get his way Not in over twenty years. But I've been in his head. I _know _what's he capable of and it scares the shit outta me," she cried. She had to pull back from the paper; she could cry on them. Couldn't let all her hard work get washed away.

"And he _wants_ me, Prof," she cried. "He wants me by his side and he knows that I know what he is; what he'll willing to do to me, to those I _care_ about," she cried her voice cracking; tears were freely running down her face. It was taking every ounce of will power she had not to break down completely.

"And it fucking _terrifies_ me," she shouted "and all I can think about is how I know he won't _physically_ hurt me," she started to say; every fiber of her being was telling her to stop. That what she was about to say was too close to the truth. But she couldn't will herself to stop ranting. "No, he'll take me away from the institute, all of you, my family. Claiming that he can give me better. That I'll be happier with him than I've been with anyone else," she said tears running down her face. His claim hurt more than she had allowed herself to admit; she honestly wasn't sure if he was wrong anymore. Maybe she would be happier with him.

"And all I can think about is how I gotta tell you as much about this place before he does that," she said sadly. "That I gotta prepare all of you to fight him. So, that you, Kitty, Kurt, everyone, so that no one gets _killed_," she cried her voice cracking again. "And telling you about this place; how's he recruiting his army is the only thing I can think about right now. So, _please_, let me finish," she said as she sat down. "Just- just let me finish, please," she cried; unable to hold it back any longer. She pulled her knees up to her chest; hugging them to her as she let go of her control. She winched as she felt a his hand on her back.

"Rogue, please know that I will do everything in my power to keep that from happening," he said gently. It took a moment, but she managed to glance up at him.

"I- I know that, Prof. Really, I do. I know that you would fight to the end to keep him-... it's just... I-... I just don't think that everything you've got is gonna be enough," she muttered. They held each other's gaze for a few moments before Rogue closed her eyes. She rested her head on her knees as she took a few deep breaths.

"Rogue," Charles said. "Ororo and I are going to escort you and Kitty to and from school tomorrow. Nothing is going to happen. However, if Magneto does made an appearance-" he started to say. Her head shot up.

"You have to make sure that Ororo doesn't attack him with lighten. It's _electricity_. He'll just throw it back at her," she warned quickly. She gazed at his surprised expression.

"I- I will make sure that she is aware of that," Charles said with a nod.

"O-okay," Rogue muttered.

"Thank you, again, Rogue," he said. "The suggestions you've made today and all of this," he said; both of the glanced at the set of blueprints on the tables. "It's extraordinary what you've accomplished within the last twenty-four hours. Thank you for that... But perhaps this search is not a good idea," Charles offered.

"It's my past," she said again.

"I know, Rogue, but look at what this search is doing to you. It is not healthy," he said.

"This is how my powers work," Rogue said. "I'm only like this cause I found something disturbing. That doesn't always happen," she explained.

"I know, but-" he started to say.

"Prof, I already told you I'm not going to be bed until I finish this, and I know you're not gonna leave the room until I do. So, you can either sit there talking to me; slowing me down. Or you can pick up a pencil and help me finish this faster," she said as she gazed down at him. He let out a sigh before he reached forward and grabbed a pencil.

"What can I do to help?" he asked. Rogue smiled as she showed him where to draw the cameras.

* * *

Thank you to, Tenchi13, Lost O'Fallon Girl, Gah, Hotgirlow, and BasialM82 for reading, reviewing and voting! And thank you Moonlove2527 for reading, reviewing and all the alerts!

I would like to give a special shout out to Gah! Thank you so much for your review! The idea about the butterfly was too cute; I couldn't help but steal it! I was also going through a little writers block last week :( But the imagery in your review was really inspiring! You seriously helped me write this chapter. Thank you so much for that!

Please review for this chapter! I can not tell you how many times I've been inspired by a review!

Thank you!


	37. Chapter 36

Thank you for reading and reviewing! Please Enjoy :)

(To those we read this after I first posted it I'm sorry about the huge typo in the begining. The sentence was some discription I was playing with in my first draft and somehow even after reading it over six times I didn't catch it untill I read it once I was reading over the live preview. I apologize if the sentence confused or angered anyone. It's gone now)

* * *

Tainting Repartee

Chapter Thirty-Six

The next morning Rogue stood up from the kitchen table; having just finished her breakfast.

"I can't believe we have to go to detention today," Kitty said as she stood up; plate in hand she brought it over to the dishwasher. Rogue yawned as she put her plate in the dishwasher. Her and the Professor hadn't finished the blueprints until two in the morning and now only five hours later she had to go to out.

"I wish I was in bed," Rogue muttered as the Professor and Storm enter the room.

"Are you girls ready to go?" he asked. Rogue glanced over at them; Charles had bags under his eyes.

"Professor, are you, like, okay?" Kitty asked.

"I did not get enough sleep last night. That is all, Kitty. Nothing for you to concern yourself over. Shall we?" he asked with a forced smile.

"Do we have to?" Kitty asked as she walked towards him.

"I'm afraid so," he said as Rogue walked over to the table. She reached down and grabbed her bag off the ground. She looked in the front pocket.

_'Yup, communicator's still there,'_ she thought relieved. "Prof, can we talk for a minute before we go?" Rogue asked.

"Of course," he said. "We'll meet you by the car in a moment," he said to Storm; she nodded. Rogue took a sit at the table as Storm and Kitty left the room. "Yes, Rogue?" he asked.

"I need you to promise me something," she said.

"Rogue, I understand that you are worried about Magneto but we have taken all the precautions we can and-"

"And I already told you I don't think it's gonna be enough. So, I need you to promise me that if-"

"It will-"

"_If_ Magneto does kidnap me that you won't let life here stop," she said strongly.

"That we not be necessa-"

"You make sure everyone goes to school, and ya try to make Kitty and Kurt have a little fun," she said.

"If you would only allow me to spea-" he said. His face was losing it's normal neutral expression. He was clearly becoming agitated

"It'll be tough on them; but their worlds' can not fall apart cause I ain't here," she said cutting him off again.

"Rogue, please stop," he shouted .

"Promise me," she shouted louder.

"Rogue," he shouted again.

"Please," she yelled.

"I promise," he shouted. "... Alright, I promise," he said softer.

"Everything alright in here?" Logan asked. They both glanced up at Logan; who was standing in the doorway.

"Everything is fine," Charles said; he sounded exhausted.

"Thank you," she said. Charles turned back to look at her. "That all I wanted to say. I told you everything else I can last night," she said.

"Rogue, nothing is going to happen today," he said softly.

"I really hope you're right, cause if Magneto manages to get to me out of Bayville without you following behind; you are not gonna be able to find me. Not unless he wants you to and he ain't gonna want you to," she said. "We should go. Me and Kitty can't afford to be late," she said.

"After you," he sighed as she stood up.

* * *

Rogue let out a sigh as she glanced out the window. She had been in dentition for three hours now and Magneto hadn't rushed into the room to kidnap her yet. The more time passed the more she was able to relax. There was only a half an hour left till dentition was over. But for her it couldn't end soon-

"Listen up, everyone," Ms. Ginos the teacher running dentition said. "Today, I have a little social gathering to attend. So, consider it you're lucky day, you all get to leave early," she said. Her statement was met with a few happy exclamations. Rogue closed the textbook she had been reading. "Now, whatever it is you did to get this punishment, my advice, don't do it again. You're dismissed," she said before all of the students got up. Rogue and Kitty both packed up their stuff.

"Alright," Kitty said happily as they headed out of the room.

"We still gotta wait for Prof to get here no matter what," Rogue pointed out as she put her backpack on.

"Yeah, but, like, having less dentition is always totally awesome. I'm just gonna run to the bathroom," she said with a smile.

"I'll go see if Prof's here. Met ya outside?" she asked. Kitty nodded before they headed in separate directions. Rogue took a deep breath of fresh air as she got outside._ 'No sign of Prof yet,'_ she thought as she looked around. Her eyes focused on a silver car parked to her left. _'But Max's car is still here,' _she thought with a sigh.

She glanced out onto the street; on the side of the road the Professor needed to use to reach the school there were cars lined up as far as she could see in both directions.

_'They're gonna be late,'_ she thought annoyed as she took a seat on the steps. She let out a sigh and waited...

* * *

Five minutes passed and as she glanced upon the traffic; it didn't seem to be moving at all.

_'I wonder what's taken Kitty so long,'_ she thought as she stood up. She reentered the building and headed into the bathroom she knew Kitty would go to. She gasped as she entered; Kitty was laying on the floor.

"Kitty," she exclaimed as she ran over to her and kneed by her roommates side. She placed her hand on Kitty's should and shook her slightly. "Kitty, kitty," she called out. But it was no use; she wouldn't wake up. She placed her hand over Kitty's heart._ 'Thank god,'_ she thought as she felt a pulse. _'… Fuck, Magneto's here somewhere. What the fuck am I gonna do?' _she asked herself as she glanced around the room.

"Kitty, I am so sorry but I need your powers," she said before She quickly shed her glove and placed her bare hand on Kitty's cheek. Her eyes widened in fear as she felt no transfer occur._ 'What?'_ she asked panicked. Tears formed in the corner of her eyes as she waited for something to happen; but nothing did. This was the first time she had ever touched her best friend's skin without hurting her and she wasn't even awake. Rogue took a deep breath.

_'It's not just Magneto I can touch. He turns off my powers. How the fuck can he do that?'_ she asked herself. She took deep breaths._ '… I need a plan _now._ I can panic later when I'm home... if I'm home,'_ she thought as she put her glove back on._ 'Okay... okay,' _she thought as she took deep breaths.

_'Magneto can turn off my powers. So, it's gotta be some kind of machine that's doing it. It's can't be on him cause I've seen him strip before and I would've noticed something like that so. The car... It's gotta be in the car,' _she realized.

_'Or somewhere else,' _she thought with a deep breath._ 'If it ain't there then I'm fucked no matter what. So, I just gotta assume... I need to get rid of the car... I need Kurt's help,' _she realized as she pulled at her backpack. She reached in the front pocket and took out the her communicator. "Hello?" she called into it. "Hello?"

"Rogue, everything okay?" Scott asked.

"No, Magneto's here at the school. I just found Kitty on the floor; she unconscious. You have to find, Prof, tell him what's going on. I'm pretty sure he stuck in traffic right now," she said.

"Rogue, hang in there. We're on our way," Scott said

"Make sure Kurt's with you," she added before she put it back in her bag._ 'Okay,_ a_ssuming, I can get rid of the car. I'm gonna need to absorb Max. Kissing him wou-... He's gonna notice too fast. I need __to...' _she started to think as she glanced at her hand._ 'I need a pair of scissors,'_ she thought as she stood headed towards the door, but turned back asshe felt a surge of guilt about leaving her teammate.

"Sorry, Kitty," she muttered before she exited the bathroom._ 'Ms. Ginos used a pair earlier,' _she thought._ 'Where did she-'_ she started to ask before her mind showed her a flash; she had put them in the top draw of the desk.

Rogue ran back to the classroom and up to the desk; opening the draw she grabbed the scissors. She put them in her backpack's front pocket. She ran to a window and glanced out.

_'I don't see him,' _she thought before taking a deep breath. "He's gotta be in the building then... Okay, so now what?" she asked herself.

"You come with me." She quickly turned around to see Magneto standing just outside the doorway. "Good morning, Anna," he said with a smile.

"Hello, Max," she said quietly. _'Girl, you need to stall him,' _she thought.

"How are you, my girl?" he asked.

"I'm about to be kidnapped again, so I don't really know," she said as he walked up to her. "How are you?" she asked as she folded her arms over her chest. "Still bored?" she asked bitterly as he put his arms on her shoulders.

"Not now, no," he said as he studied her face. "Anna, are you alright?" he asked concerned as his hand cupped her cheek; she felt her face flush. How could one touch from him always do that to her?

"I didn't get enough sleep last night," she said honestly. Her eyes closed as he rubbed her shoulder. "I am not in the mood for this today. You wouldn't consider just leaving would you?" she asked hopefully as she gazing into his eyes. He chuckled softly. "That's a no huh?" she asked.

"I'm afraid so," he said with a smirk.

"Lair," Rogue muttered. He chuckled again as he leaned in to kiss her. As his tongue entered her mouth she saw a flash of him holding her younger self on his lap. She tired to push the image back. Kissing would give her them so much more time; she had to keep him busy. But he must have felt her hesitation because be pulled back from the kiss. He stared at her again for a moment; an eyebrow raised. "I'm tired, that's all," she said in response to his expression.

"Well, then you can sleep in car and after you have consumed a very appetizing lunch I'm certain your energies will be restored," he said with a smile before he gave her another light peck on the lips; his hand still massaging her shoulder.

"That actually sounds really nice," she muttered as she closed her eyes again. A part of her just wanted to fall into his arms, let him take care of her.

"You're surprised?" he asked as she leaned her head on his chest. "You and I have had enjoyed one another's company before," he said.

"I know it's just...," she started to say as she felt his hand on her chin; he lifted her chin to face him.

"Are you certain it's just fatigue, Anna?" he asked as he gazed into her eyes. She sighed.

"There is something I just- I don't feel like-" she started to say._ 'Wait, if I-'_ she started to think. "It's about my Dad," she sighed; realizing that talking about it would give her family more time to get to the school.

"Sabortooth?" he asked surprised; he moved his hands to rest on her shoulders. "It's been quite some time since you referred to him by that title," he said.

"Yeah, it has," she whispered.

"What brought this on?" he asked concerned.

"I saw him the other day when we were driving home in your car," she said.

"Yes?" he asked; encouraging her to keep speaking.

"Kitty and I stopped at this bar," she started to say.

"Why possessed you to do that?" he asked confused.

"We wanted to use a phone; let everyone know that we were alive. We were gone awhile. I knew Prof would be assuming the worst; worried out of his mind," she said.

"Go on," he said.

"So, things went a little crazy in there. Some guys had problems with us being mutants, and the bartender had a gun. It all happened so fast but Dad got shot and Me and Kitty were driving away and he had just taken a bullet for me. I couldn't just leave them," she said.

"Of course not," he said.

"Kitty was yelling at me that I couldn't Sabertooth into the car, but I had to, you know?" she asked.

"He's your father. It doesn't matter that the two of you haven't talked in years. He had to take that bullet for you and you couldn't leave him behind. I see fear in your gaze. Anna, if the X-Men can not understand that bond you have with Victor. If _Wolverine_ can not understand that bond then perhaps the X-Men are no the family you have been seeking all your life," he said.

"I don't," she muttered quietly. "When ever anyone else see's their parent no one else has to hold meeting to discuss the conversation; just me... and Kurt," she added. "I don't know. I told Logan that Victor's my father," she said.

"How did he react?" he asked.

"He hasn't yet. We haven't talked about it," she said.

"There should be nothing to discuss. You cannot help who raised you. He should not hold that against you. You did not ask to be adopted by them," he said.

_'You would know,'_ she thought bitterly.

"Anna?" he asked.

"Victor said, when we were in the car, that he used to sent me cards and that he left me numbers to call him, so we could stay in touch and everything, but I don't remember ever getting anything like that from him. Not back then. So, I don't know if he's lying or if Irene kept them from me," she said. "Either way I'm gonna get another reason ta hate one of my parents. I just- I ain't looking forward to finding out who it is," she finished.

"I'm sorry," he said; his hand squeezing her shoulder. She glanced up at him; an idea occurring to her.

"Why? It's not like it's your fault I had to live with any of them, right?" she asked with a smirk. She studied his facial expression; his smile faltered. Only for a second but she caught it.

* * *

"Of course, not," he said with a smile. "That would be-" he started before his eyes widened. "Is that the XM-Velocity?" he asked in disbelief. Rogue quickly turned her head to glance out the window. _'Damn it, I was supposed to have her out of Bayville before the x-men became aware,'_ he thought as he saw the plane out in the distance; hovering over the traffic he had created. "Come," he ordered as he grabbed her wrist.

"And what about my family?" she asked as he pulled her out of the room.

"What about them; aside from the unbelievable annoyance they are about to become?" he asked irate as he pulled her down the hallway.

"This is the first time they're gonna know that you kidnapped me," she said as he felt her fight against his grip. He tightened his grip but only enough to keep her from escaping; he didn't want to hurt her. "Do you know how worried they're gonna be? Do you know how worried Prof will be? How powerless he's gonna feel in his own home; having no way to find me. Having to wait for _you_ to bring me back. He's not even gonna be sure that you _will_ bring me back," she said as he marched her out of the building; although he heard her words he wasn't really listening. He had other concerns to deal with.

"But you know that I will return you to them; Monday morning," he said as he dragged her towards the car. _'I must take this confrontation, else where,'_ he thought.

"But what I'm-" she started to say as he opened the car's front door.

"Get in," he ordered as she took her backpack off.

"But-" she tried to say as he watched her turn to face him.

"If we do not leave now I can not guarantee that this establishment will stay standing," he said as he gently pulled her into the seat. He used his powers to trap her there. He heard her sigh as he closed the door. Quickly, he got into the driver's seat and started to car. He pulled out of the parking spot and drove out onto the raced down the road; going eighty miles an hour. Not that his car stood a chance of outracing a jet.

_'Damn it.' _He was just supposed to cause a little traffic to delay Charles; knock out anyone else in the school to keep them from interfering and pick up Anna; taking the car that was already waiting for him at the school. It was a simple plan. He had used similar strategies in the past. _'I do not understand what went wrong,'_ he thought to himself as he glanced out the rear view mirror. He could see the XM-Velocity it was still a short distance from the school; he watched it shift directions; flying towards them._ 'I need a new plan,'_ he thought to himself annoyed.

"Where are we going?" Rogue asked.

"Somewhere this fight will not draw the media's attention," he answered.

"So what? Like the woods or something?" she asked.

_'Not a bad idea,'_ he thought to himself as he drove. _'Only a few more miles until we reach-,'_ he thought. "Yes, precisely," he replied.

"Max, I-" she started to say.

"Anna, I need a few minutes to think. I was not expecting a confrontation. Now, I must think of a way to keep this fight from destroying the facade. Would you please be quiet for a moment?" he asked.

"Fine," she sighed quietly.

"Thank you," he uttered.

* * *

Charles Xavier sat in the XM-Velocity; searching for Rogue's mind; he had heard her call out to him a moment but had yet to make contact. His X-Men had picked him up from his car only five minutes ago informing him that Magneto was after Rogue again.

"Professor," Hank said from the pilot seat of the XM-Velocity "I have them in our sights," he said.

"Good, Hank. Keep following but do not get too close," he ordered.

"Charles, I could get out and get closer on my own," Storm said from her seat behind him.

"That will not be necessary," he said as he placed his hands on his temples. The loud whispers coming from his students and colleagues were keeping him from being able to concentrate. "Everyone please, I know you are all worried about Rogue, but I need quiet to communicate with her," he said. The plane fulled with Scott, Jean, Kurt, Spike, Mr. Beast and Storm grew silent. _'Rogue?'_ he projected into her mind._ 'Can you hear me?'_ he asked.

_'Yeah. Is Kitty with you? Is she okay?' _she asked.

_'I sent Logan and some of the students to find her. I'm certain she will be fine,' _he answered.

_'Good. Kurt's with you, right?' _she asked.

_'Yes, of course,'_ he said.

_'Okay then here's what you gotta do; I need you to project these five images into Kurt's mind,' _she thought. He was hit with an onslaught of images; Four different roads; and then a beach. _'This is where he's gotta teleport me and the car too-' _

_'Rogue, slow down, please,'_ he said.

_'Sorry, Prof, I don't have a lot of time. If this doesn't work than Magneto is kidnapping me aga- and god knows when he's gonna bring me back,'_ she thought; even her thoughts had a panicked tone to them.

_'Rogue, we have other options,'_ he said calmly._ 'Is Magneto wearing his helmet?'_ he asked.

_'No, but I don't think it's gonna make a difference.'_

_'I would like to try. With Jean's help we may be able to stop this battle before it begins,' _he said.

_'Okay, it would be great it that works, but I need you to make sure Kurt's ready in case it doesn't,'_ she said.

_'What is the point to tel-' _he started to ask.

_'If I get to go home today I'll explain later. When I say now; have Kurt teleport into the driver's seat of the car and then to the first location, okay?_ Please_?' _she asked.

_'Alright,' _he answered._ 'Show me the images again,'_ he said.

* * *

A few minutes later Magneto pulled the car off of the road and into a heavily wooded area; he had to greatly reduce the speed of the car to keep them from crashing into something.

"Can I talk now?" she asked bitterly. He did not respond; he merely continued concentrating on driving. "So, where's the plane gonna land?" Rogue asked.

"That is Charles' problem, not mine," he muttered as he carefully drove in between the trees.

"And what if a news helicopter sees it hovering and comes closer to see why a plane is-" Rogue started to ask.

"Alright," he growled; out of the corner of his eye he saw he wince. "You've made a good point," he said calmer as he caught sight of a clearing; he drove towards it. The space as far as he could guess looked about thirty- forty feet wide. _'That should suffice,'_ he thought.

"So, what's the plan?" she asked softly.

"We will drive to that clearing. I get out and assure that you family can not follow us; without seriously hurting anyone of them Then we leave," he told her.

"That's it?" she asked. He chuckled.

"It's basic strategy, Anna. A simple plan is always ideal. The fewer details there are to one's plan the less chance there is for something to go horribly wrong," he told her.

"Right," she sighed. "But the emergence was-" she started to say.

"A convoluted mess in terms of strategies. So utterly complicated that it needs constant maintenance to keep it from falling apart. Case in point; this chase. If I did not have to worry about the facade I would have stopped your families' pursuit at the school. Instead, we must endure through this," he said.

"Or you could let me out of the car and just drive away. As long as I'm free they won't chase ya," she pointed out. He stared at her through the rear view mirror for a second. "What? You wanna simple solution? Let me go now and call the institute later. I won't hang up on you this time, I promise," she said as he pulled the car into the far right of the clearing. He had been right; there should be enough room for both his car and the XM-Velocity.

"We're already here," he said as he stopped the car. "Besides they are certain activities we can not engage in over the phone," he said as he placed his hand on her cheek. He watched her take a deep breath. He glanced up. The XM-Velocity was overhead; starting to land. _'We have a moment,'_ he thought before he leaned in and kissed her. She moaned softly as he moved his free hand to her shoulder.

It was then he felt it; a telepath's attempt to enter his mind. He couldn't help but smirk against her lips. _'I'm afraid, Charles, I have too much practice against telepaths for that tactic to work,'_ he thought before he used sheer will power to ex-spell Charles from his mind. "Wait here," he told her.

"Like, I have a choice," she said bitterly. He chuckled before he leaned in and gave her a quick peck.

"This will be over in a moment," he said.

* * *

_'Not as soon as you think,' _Rogue thought as she watched him get out of the car. _'Prof?' _she called out.

_'Ye- yes, Rogue?'_ he answered.

_'You, okay?'_ she asked concerned.

_'I attempted to enter Magneto's mind.'_

_'And it didn't work,' _she thought with a sigh._ 'Then we gotta go with my plan. Is Kurt ready? Does he know each location?' _she asked.

_'Yes,'_ he answered as Rogue watched Magneto walk forward; finally he took his hand off the car.

_'Now,'_ she told him; within a second her brother was in the driver's seat; teleporting them and the car away.

* * *

_'What?'_ Magneto thought in disbelief as he turned to see his car and Rogue were no longer there. His hands balled at his sides.

"X-Men attack," he heard Mr Summer's yelled out. He turned his attention back towards the XM- Velocity. He was no longer in the mood to humor anything. He took control over each the X-Men's electrochemical signals; freezing them in place.

"I can't move," Spike shouted out in a panic.

"I believe that none of us can," Mr. McCoy said.

"Everyone needs to stay calm," Scott said.

_'Perhaps, I _should_ cultivate these abilities. They're quite useful,'_ he thought to himself.

"Magnus," Charles said strongly. Max watched him come down the plane's ramp.

"Charles," he said dryly.

"This must stop. She is only seventeen years old; a child. What you want from her is-" Charles started to say.

"Is what_ both_ of us desire. Or as a child is her opinion of no concern of yours?" Magneto asked.

"Rogue is young; what you ask of her is too much for someone her age to handle," he said.

"By the time I was seventeen I had gotten married and was an adult providing for my family. It is society's view on what age a child becomes an adult that has changed; _not_ what a person is actually capabl-" Magneto started to say until he heard a crash in the tree above. He glanced up; Rogue and Mr. Wanger were falling from forty feet in the air to the ground; hitting various tree branchs on her way down.

His eyes widened in fear as his instants took over. He flew up and grabbed her out of the air into his arms. He also took hold Kurt's body and gently lowered him to the ground; placing him with the other X-Men. His eyes met Charles as he he feet touched the dirt; he saw surprise in the man's expression. He laid Rogue down on the ground; his back turned to all the X-Men.

"What happened?" she muttered as he eyes fluttered open.

"Your brother needs to work on his landings," he said with a smile as he glanced up. Rogue laughed softly as they both looked at the broken branch.

"You saved me?" she asked.

"Of course," he said as their eyes met again.

"Thank you," she muttered as her eyes move to his lips; before quickly returning to his eyes. He smirked as he leaned down and kissed her.

_'She's absorbing me,'_ he thought in disbelief as he felt her hand on his cheek. He tried to pull back from the kiss but she had a strong grip on his face and managed to keep the connection for another few seconds. He grabbed at her hand before he felt a surge of pain in stomach. He was caught by surprise as she used a bolt of lightening to push him away from her; about twenty feet.

"Rogue," Charles exclaimed.

"I'm okay," she said quickly. Magneto glanced back at Rogue; who was breathing heavily. Their eyes made contact as she lifted her hand up; electrify firing out of it towards him. He easily dissolved the charge. He could have sent it back at her but he didn't want to knock her unconscious.

'_Not when things are finally starting to get interesting,'_ he thought. "And what will you do now that you have absorbed me, Anna?" he asked as he stood up off the ground. "You think you can use _my_ powers to defeat _me_?" he asked as he took a step towards her. He watched her rush to her feet. "Tell me, how many years have I been the master of magnetism?" he asked as she held her hand up: readying herself, no doubt, to let loose another charge of electricity his way.

"Forty-two," she said. He couldn't help but smile. There was no hesitation in her reply; he really did love that about her.

"I know that you have contemplated the uses of these abilities before and you are a quick study, my girl. But even you are not _that _quick," he warned as he stepped closer. "Fight me and yo-" he started to warn as his gaze move onto her hand; where he noticed a square had been cut out of the base of her palm; showing bare skin. His eyes widen. "You planned this?" he asked her in disbelief; his eyes meeting her again.

"Yeah," she said softly; she was still out of breath. His girl, his pupil, had just utilized all the skills he had taught her in a strategy against him. Pride overtook him; he needed to know everything.

"How could you have know that the X-Men would arrive in time?" he asked.

"Eric, I not gonna stand here and play your fucking mind games," she said.

"Take a look to your right," he ordered sternly. She didn't have to; she knew full well that he had more than half her family at his mercy. "And tell me whether you are in a position to deny me answers," he said.

"Rogue, you don't have to-" the Professor's started to say.

"Charles, _our_ conversation is over. This is between myself and Rogue now. You can either watched silently as your students have very wisely chosen to do. Or you coul-"

"I had a communicator. I called them," Rogue yelled; calling for his attention; he could hear the fear in her voice.

"Was that so difficult?" he asked with a smirk as he look back at her.

"You tell me? You _suck _at answering questions," she said. He chuckled as he took another step towards her.

"And you can lower that hand of yours. The buff is no longer necessary. We both know you will not attack again. Not while I have so many hostages, " he said with a smirk. He watched the anger in her eyes as she moved her hand to her side. "Walk me through it. How did you know I was in the building? I want to know every detail," he said. He watched her eyes moved onto Charles'. "Anna," he shouted as he used his powers to shake Charles' wheel chair.

"I went to the bathroom to see what was taking Kitty so long and I saw she was unconscious," she said annoyed as she turned back to look at him. "I tried to absorb her but it didn't work. That's when I knew you were there and I figured that whatever it was you used to stop my powers from working-"

"Mutant inhibitor field," he supplied.

"Whatever," she said dismissively. "I figured the inhibitor field was in the car. So, I needed to get rid of it. That's when I used my communicator. And you saw what happened. I don't have to explain every fucking detail," she said.

"You will if I say you do," he warned. "You would not want me to-"

"Do what? Kill them?" she asked mockingly. "Hello, they're _mutants_. And don't you have a this lifelong mission to protect mutants from whatever the fuck is out there threatening our kind? You ain't gonna seriously hurt any of them. You'll knock'em unconscious or scare the shit out of them. But every single person here's gonna survive this. That's what matters," she yelled.

"Agreed," he smirked as he took another step forward; he paused for a moment as he sensed an motorcycle heading in this direction. _'Ah, Wolverine; I wondering where he was,'_ he thought before he heard Rogue say.

"In hostage situations don't-"

"I already agreed with you, Anna," he said. "It seems we are at a bit of a _standstill_," he said; Rogue was glancing behind him; he could hear the motorcycle now. He turned around to see Wolverine riding towards him. He could help but chuckle when he saw that Wolverine had his claws out. _'What use would those be against me?'_ he asked himself with a smirk.

Within a moment he dismantled the motorcycle and lifted Wolverine in the air. He felt resistance against his control over Wolverine's body. He turned around to see his girl staring intently at the man. Magneto chuckled as he walked closer to her.

"Having difficulties, Anna?" he asked with a smirk. "And you are only attempting to take control over one the X-Men I have taken captive. Imagine if you were fighting me on all seven fronts. I was only going to place him with the others. Nothing to tire yourself out over," he said as he felt her loosen her grip on Wolverine's body. "That's it," he coached as he moved Wolverine to the ground; next to Storm. "Good girl," he said he placed his hand on her arm. He was caught by surprise when she teleported them away.

* * *

I know clifhangers suck; but I started to write the next scene and when realized how long it was to be. I figured this would be a good place to end this chapter. So, I love you all for reading. Please review? :)

Alienarcher326, Lost O'Fallon Girl, and BasialM82: thank you so much for reviewing and reading! I really glad that you're all in enjoying it. And I hope you each loved this chapter! :)


	38. Chapter 37

Hey, everyone! It's a new chapter! :) At the end there is a fourth wall breaking bonus scene! I hope you all enjoy it and the chapter!

Oh and just to let everyone know I've also updated Operation Repartee! Don't know what that is? Go check it out!

Please enjoy!

* * *

Tainting Repartee

Chapter Thirty-Seven

Magneto was caught by surprise as Rogue teleported them away from the x-men. They reappeared, what he assumed was, about two miles from where they were; high up in the air. He quickly called upon his powers of flight. Realizing that his girl had done the same he took his hand off her arm; flying back a few feet away from her. Now, it was time to have a uninhibited conversation; without the unwanted audience.

"An-" he tried to say as Rogue aiming a kick at his stomach. He dodged that and five more of her attempts to physically assault him. "Anna, may w-" he started to say before he caught hold of her fist; she teleported.

This time they appeared on a road; a deafening beeping noise assaulted his senses. He did not have to look up; he could feel the truck speeding towards them. He quickly grabbed her shoulders. As he pulled them both up into the air; barely avoiding the vehicle.

"Anna?" he asked concerned; he could feel her body trembling. He pulled her closer to him. For a moment he felt her hesitate before she leaned her head on his chest. He heard her let out a soft whimper as he kissed the top of her head. He rubbed her arms where there was fabric to protect him from her powers. He could hear her struggling to keep herself from crying. She lifted her head off of him as she took deep breaths. Slowly her breathing returned to normal. "Anna, are you alright?" he asked. She looked up at him incredulously.

"No, I'm not alright," she said with tears in her eyes. "_Of course_, I ain't alright. Not when you keep trying to fucking kidnap me at the time," she yelled before she attempted kick him. He moved to avoid being hit.

"Anna, physical attacks will not harm me. You are far to exhausted for that tactic to-" he said as she fought against his hold; he tightened his grip.

"Your powers are gonna fade and then what am I gonna do," she mumbled.

"Talk to me," he said strongly before his eyes widened; she was summoning a magnetic pulse around her. Thankfully, he was able to withstand it; although the process was painful. "Anna Marie, stop this," he yelled as his eyes sought hers. She closed her eyes tightly. He watched tears run down her fight as she fought to ignore him. "I am more than capable of subduing your attacks, my girl, but I do not wish to harm you. Stop fighting me and let us discuss this," he said in his most coxing tone.

"No," she said before she increased in the intensity of her pulse. He coped with her onslaught of energy for a few more moments before he was forced to back away from her. Light emanated forth; threatening to engulf him in raw magnetic energy. He threw up a magnetic shield around him. He reached out with his powers; trying to take control of her electrochemical signal as he had with her family. But she somehow managed to shake off his effort; maintaining her freedom.

_'Perhaps, I should wait until my powers have receded from her control,' _he thought.

* * *

_'I am so fucked,'_ Rogue thought as she fought to sustain the energy around her. She wasn't even sure what she was doing; she was projecting this force by instinct. Why had she assumed that once she had his powers she would be able to fight him? Why hadn't she thought this through more thoroughly?

_'I doubt you had time to consider all possibilities,'_ the fragment of Magneto said. He was right.

_'I don't know what to do now,'_ she thought. She wanted to go into her mind; study how he used his powers. Find someway to fight him; a way to defeat him.

_'Again that would require time; a luxury you currently cannot afford,' _the fragment pointed out.

_'I know,'_ she thought overwhelmed.

_'You still have your brother's powers. You could flee; buy yourself the necessary amount of time to strategize,' _he suggested. It wasn't a bad idea. _'Where is the last place my counterpart would search for you?'_ he asked. A location came to mind but then a thought occurred to her.

_'The first place he'll look is the back with the X-Men and if I ain't there he might take them captive to get me to come to him,' _she thought panicked.

_'My girl, my counterpart has never released them,' _he exclaimed. '_He has merely allowed them the _illusion_ of freedom. What he _may_ threaten is the temporary destruction of that illusion but he _will_ permit them to return to their lives unharmed as he had before. You should not allow the threat alone to deter you from seeking your answers,'_ the fragment pointed out.

_'I get what you're saying, Max. I do. But I can't just abandon them,'_ she thought desperately.

_'Who suggested you abandon them? I certainly did not. Yes, you could flee the _state_ to escape him if you wished. But I know that you would not sacrifice you're family's peace of mind to regain your own. You are far too loyal to utilize that tactic. A day, or two in hiding is what you need to process all the information newly at your disposal. Once you are his equal in knowledge, you can face him and then we shall see who will emerge victorious,' _he finished.

_'Are you actually trying to help me?' _she asked in disbelief; the thought finally occurring to her. She gasped as she realized her shield was faltering. She felt a force attempting to break through her energy. She took a deep breath as she concentrated to reaffirm her shield.

_'Anna, I have never been so proud of you. Of course, I wish to assist,' _the fragment said._ 'I fully comprehend how your powers work, beloved,; _he thought; Rogue felt an overwhelming passion come from him as he thought the endearment. She took a deep breath.

_'You have been questioning that, haven't you? Wouldn't you like, if nothing else, to explore my feelings for you? Unlike the other fragments I understand that_ _I am apart of you now. At least until my counterpart deems my existences redundant. Why shouldn't both of us use the little time we have to our advantage?' _he asked. He sounded as sincere as he always did but for once she could actually _feel_ his sincerity. He was telling the truth.

"Okay, okay," she muttered as she took off her gloves.

* * *

Magneto stared at the ball of light in front of him. He knew that Rogue was in the center of it."Anna," he called out. He waited a moment; hoping for a response.

He received it the form of two bare hands coming from behind him; grasping his cheeks. He felt his energy leaving him as he grabbed her arms; he started to pull them away from his face. He managed to pull her hands off of his face. He hissed in pain as her other hand remained; her nails digging into his skin as he lost all physical contact with her. Braising himself from her next attack, he spun around.

Rogue was gone.

He glanced around the area, searching for her, but she was no where in sight. His eyes widened for brief moment as he felt something warm drip down his face. His fingers brushed his cheek. His eyes narrowed in anger as he stared down at his fingers. How many years had it been since he had seen the color of his own blood?

_'It hardly matters now,'_ he thought dryly as he rose high into the air; he saw some roads in the distance. _'Where would she go?'_ he asked himself. His first thought was to the X-Men. _'An idea worth investigating once I learn where I am,' _he thought as he flew off.

* * *

Charles Xavier glanced around at all of his X-Men. It had taken a few moments but finally his students were moving their bodies' again. They were all still clearly disorientated.

"Is everyone alright?" Charles Xavier asked again.

"I think so," Jean said as she started to move her arms. "Scott?" she asked as she slowly turned her head to glance at him.

"I'm okay," Cyclops said as he took a step forward.

"What was that?" Spike asked confused as he moved his arms.

"I do not know," Charles said; he hoped that he had properly concealed the fear he was feeling from his voice. "Ororo?" he asked. Storm was now knelling next to Nightcrawler.

"I believe he will be alright," Storm said. "I think it was Rogue's powers that caused his unconsciousness," she added.

"Agreed," Charles said. Wolverine had gotten to his feet minutes ago; he was sniffing around searching for any sign of Rogue.

"It is no use, Logan. Rogue teleported them away from this area," Storm said.

"They could be miles from here," Beast pointed out.

"We don't know that," Wolverine growled. "We have to find them before Magneto takes her out of Bayville. You remember what she said this morning," Wolverine said in anger.

"I do, of course," Charles nodded; her words had been haunting him since he learned of the kidnapping. He had tried to convince her that she was no danger. How wrong he had been?

"What did Rogue say?" Storm asked.

"That if Magneto managed to kidnap her that it was vital the X-Men followed; or else we would likely be unable to location either of them," Charles answered gravely.

"Wait a minute. Rogue knew that creep was gonna kidnap her?" Evan asked in disbelief.

"She did not know when-" Charles started to answer.

"Yeah, she did," Wolverine said strongly as he marched back towards the group. "She knew. This morning she said it; that Magneto was coming for her. I could see how worried she was. Why didn't I believe her?" he asked himself in anger.

"Why didn't _you _believe her, Charles?" Beast asked.

"She was very emotional. More so than I've ever seen her; this morning and last night. She was so insistent upon finishing those blueprints. I thought she was overreacting. We had taken, what I thought, were all the necessary precautions against Magneto to keep her safe. I believed that if a confrontation occurred I would be able to defeat him as I had Juggernaut; with my powers."

"Both you and Jean together couldn't get into his mind," Cyclops said.

"No, we were able to get in," Jean said.

"But maintaining that contact proved to be difficult. Magneto was somehow able to ex-spell us from his mind," Charles said.

"How?" Scott asked in disbelief.

"I am not certain," Charles said.

"Rogue teleported them away so he didn't kidnap her. That's good, right?" Evan asked.

"She fled because Magneto had claimed all of us as his hostages," Beast said. "He used our safely to make her comply to his wishes," he said.

"Where do you think she took him?" Jean asked as she hugged herself.

"I have no idea," Charles said again.

"Even if we find her will we be of help or a hindrance in her struggle?" Beast asked.

"We should stop asking so many questions," Wolverine growled.

"Alright, Hank, how much more work is needed until Cerbro is rebuild?" Charles asked.

"It will take me a few more days, at least, to complete it," Beast answered.

"With both of us working together, perhaps we can cut that time in half," Charles said. "Cyclops, contact the students. Find out how Shadowcat is," he ordered.

"Yes, sir," he said before he started to walk back towards the XM- Velocity.

"Wolverine and Storm, for now, you two will continue the search for Rogue. Even with Cerebro operational I have never been able to location Magneto using it. Logan, you may very well be the only one among us capable of finding him," Charles said.

"Or we could just look up," Jean said. Charles quickly glanced up to see Magneto above them; staring down.

* * *

Rogue took a deep breath as she teleported into her's and Kitty's bedroom at the institute. She laid down on her bed; beyond exhausted. The fight with Magneto had been hard enough but teleporting over ten times to get back to the institute had done her in. She took a moment to recover; breathing deeply.

_'I thought you said this was the first place he would look,'_ the fragment commented confused.

_'No, I- I said back with the X-Men,' _she thought. _'And where are they now?' _she asked with a small smile.

_'Still in those woods or close by searching for you, I suppose,' _he thought with a laugh. _'And when you are not with them my counterpart may assume you have not returned to the institute for the same reason,'_ he thought impressed.

_'Exactly, I could be anywhere,' _she thought.

_'_Brilliant_ selection, Anna,'_ he said.

"Thanks," she mumbled as she fought to keep her eyes. "I can't go to sleep yet," she muttered. She took another deep breath before bring up his mind. _'God, where the fuck do I start?'_ she asked herself.

_'Here,'_ the fragment answered as she was pulled into a memory. **All she could see was a blinding light behind her closed eyelids. **

_'Do you feel that?' _the fragment asked.

**She felt heat and lots of energy crackling all around her. **

_'That is pure uncontrolled magnetic energy. The same type you produced on instant against my counterpart,' _he said.

**She felt Magneto eyes begin to open. **

_'Quickly, my girl, pause this memory. We do not need you to add the image that follows to your nightmares,'_ he warned as she followed his instructions. _'This moment was only the second time I used __my abilities. The first time earlier that same day. I was twenty-five at the time,' _he said.

_'Max, I don't have time for a history lesson,' _she thought as she pulled out of the memory all together.

_'I promise there is a point to this lecture. Unlike you, Anna, my powers did not manifest when I approached puberty because of my circumstances in life. I was malnourished and once I entered the camps I was overworked and sleep deprived. Unlike your powers which are capable of working in any circumstance mine rely almost entirety upon the condition of my physical body,' _he said.

'_What I am telling you, my girl, is that in your current state of exhaustion you will not be able to defeat him; no matter the knowledge the gain,'_ he finished. She took deep breaths. _'You should also consider the large amount of mutants I have under my command. Even if you did manage to defeat me in battle there is still that small army to contend with,'_ he said. Rogue felt tears ran down her face. She felt powerless again.

_'So, what? I should just give up on regaining my freedom?' _she asked overwhelmed. She was struggling to keep from breaking down completely.

_'_Never,_'_ he said intensely._ 'I mean that, Anna, never. You are far too strong to give up..._ _But you should switch tactics,' _he said.

_'I just did,' _she thought frustrated.

_'And that alteration did not succeed. Think Anna; what is your greatest weapon against him, against me?' _he asked.

_'I'm... I'm too tired for this,' _she thought.

_'Then sleep. We'll talk after you've rested,' _he said.

_'That's a- a good ide-' _she started to think. "Fuck," she exclaimed under her breath.

_'What is it, Anna?' _he asked.

_'Is there a inhibitor field anywhere in the institute?' _she asked.

_'Yes,'_ he answered.

_'Where?'_ she asked. He bought an image up into her mind of it; it was beneath the eighth sub-level. She closed her eyes and reached out with his powers and twisted the metal machine beyond recognition. Her eyes opened as she was breathing heavily.

_'Anna?'_ he asked concerned.

_'I'm okay... just really tired,' _she thought.

_'Please, get some rest,'_ he said.

_'Okay,'_ she thought as she closed her eyes again. She felt a sudden surge of guilt about leaving her family alone to fight him. _'They don't stand a chance,'_ she thought sadly.

_'That is not your fault, Anna. You have needs as well. You cannot fight him in the state you are now. I doubt you could reason with him either.' _

_'I know. I just hope he doesn't take them all captive,'_ she thought frustrated.

_'He does have the facade the consider. Perhaps that will be strong enough of a deterrent,'_ he thought.

"Hopefully," she muttered before she drifted off to sleep.

* * *

"Professor, what do you want us to do?" Jean asked as Charles Xavier stared up in fear at a man he had once consider his closest friend.

"Do not attack," Charles ordered quickly.

"Where is she?" Wolverine shouted as he unsheathed his claws and Cyclops ran out of the XM-Velocity to join the others.

"Must I demonstrate how futile your means of attack are _again, _Wolverine?" Magneto asked as he lowered himself slightly: he was now hovering a few inches over the ground. Charles stared up at Magneto whom was glaring intently at Wolverine.

"No, you do not," Charles said. "Wolverine, I said do not attack," he repeated. Wolverine reluctantly sheathed his claws. He turned his attention back to Magneto "Where is Rogue?" he asked.

"I haven't the slightest idea," Magneto stated.

"What?" Charles muttered in disbelief.

"The girl teleported away from me during our fight. I had hoped she had regrouped with you but she clearly has chosen not to," Magneto said as he focused on the XM- Velocity. "... Smart girl, she probably we not return to what is left of your institute for the same reason," Magneto said as he turned his attention back to him. Charles felt a surge of anger over his comment. "If you happen to find her before I do, tell Rogue that her point has been made. I will cease my attempts of abduction," he said.

"Yet you are continuing your search for her," Charles said.

"To talk, nothing more," Magneto answered.

"Clearly, she wants nothing to do with you," Charles said. Magneto eyes narrowed.

"Is that apparent? That is not the impression I've received from our conversations. What is clear to me is that Anna enjoys my company as much as I do her's but fears the stigma of _traitor_," Magneto said.

"What she fears is _you_, Magus," he said.

"Charles, all I have done is offered to_ help_ her. With her powers and any other area she will allow me to assist her; Anna knows this. What does she have to fear?" he asked. Charles opened his mouth to speak but then hesitated; he wasn't about to reveal their knowledge of Ameila Vought. Magneto raised an eyebrow. "What does she have to fear, Charles?" he asked again. His eyes narrowed in anger.

"That you will not take no for an answer. How many times must she refuse you before you will leave her alone?" Charles asked.

"She refused my offer to join my team but she did express an _interest_ in learning from me. There is much I could teach our young Rogue. The question is will you allow it? Which is more important to you, old friend, the progress she makes with her powers; or whom she gains this knowledge from?" Magneto asked.

"And how exactly do you have so much knowledge about Rogue's abilities?" Charles asked. He had asked the same question of Rogue some weeks ago in regard to the fragment's knowledge.

"Anna's powers intrigue me. I have spent a considerable amount of time contemplating them. Through that time and my previous experiences I have the knowledge I do," he said. It was more of less the same answer he had received from Rogue. "Of course, most of the suggestions I would like to bring to her training are merely theory at this point," he added.

"You wish to experiment on her," Charles accused. "I have not forgotten the labs Wolverine found in Germany. How many other children have you experimented on?" he asked enraged.

"Experimenting on children? Charles, what on earth are you talking about?" he asked confused.

"Professor," Cyclops called at as he walked up to him. "There's something you should know," he said.

"Scott, what ever it is, it will have to-" Charles started to say.

"Me and Rogue were talking, like a month ago, about Kurt. She said that she looked at what happened in those labs from both Magneto's and Mystique's point of view. There were no experiments. Kurt was just born like that," Cyclops explained.

"You thought I experimented on the boy as a baby?" Magneto said in disgust. "Raven and I were _friends_ then. I played midwife at Mr. Wagner's birth, nothing more," he said.

"Then why did you destroy the castle? What were you hiding?" Charles asked.

"The prototype for the machine I used on Asteroid M. I did not want you find out what I was planning until _I_ was ready to present it," Magneto said. "And to answer your question; mutants are still fairly new to the world. There is much we do not know about the capabilities of our powers. If Rogue is willing to test these theories of mine, then yes, through trail and practice I hope to help her gain control over them. Now, tell me, Charles, which part of my proposal morally offenses you, " he said.

"My concerns, _as you know,_ Magus are about leaving you alone with her. I know you do not agree with me but she is too young for what you ask of her. She is my student, I must protect her," he said.

"_Your_ student?" Magneto asked with a chuckled. "We both know that _I'm_ more of a professor to her than you are," he said with a smirk.

"What the hell are you talking about Magneto?" Wolverine asked confused.

"Charles knows full well to what I refer," Magneto said with a smirk. Charles' eyes narrowed. "I believe yours and Rogue's roles have been_ reversed _at late_,_" he said. It was a truth he was not proud of.

"Charles, what is he talking about?" Storm asked.

"Yes, Charles, what am I talking about?" Magneto teased.

"I will explain later," he said quickly.

"But Charles there is so little point in _hiding_ that particular detail anymore, wouldn't you agree?" he asked mockingly. With the high amount of stress, fear and anger among his X-Men it was difficult; no impossible; to keep himself from feeling their emotions. All around him he could feel the doubts of his students and staff. Some were small, hesitant; quickly being pushed aside for the trust he has earned. Others were loud, overwhelming, rage-fulled accusations questioning his competence as a leader.

_'I wish Logan had stayed with Kitty as I had ordered,'_ Charles thought as he fought to keep himself from reading all of their thoughts. "Magneto, I will not fall victim to your tactics. You are fishing for information about Rogue; I will not be your source. If my X-Men have questions I will answer them later; once you are no longer present."

"Is that what you assume?" Magneto commented amused. "Allow me to enlighten you. Since Rogue told you of my base in the Sahara she had decided to study under my counterpart in her mind. She has made quite a bit of progress controlling the metal aspects of her powers, hasn't she Charles? And whom do we have to thank for her progression?" he asked. He refused to answer that question.

"How do you know all this?" Charles asked enraged.

"Does it honestly matter? I know that and more; you cannot erase my knowledge. It is mine to do with as I please," he said.

"What _do_ you want, Magneto?" Storm asked.

"As I have states before, Ms, Muoro, I wish to instruct Rogue. My counterpart has had that pleasure but there are _limitations_ to metal training. If Anna wishes to gain control of her physical abilities then she will have to take lessons directly from me," he said.

"I have already stated my concerns regarding your _physical_ lessons," Charles said in disgust.

"Wait, what?" Wolverine asked confused. "You telling he wants to-" he started to say. Charles could hear the rest of the thought before it had come out of his mouth.

"Yes, Logan," Charles answered.

"She's a kid, Magneto," Wolverine said irate. Magneto sighed.

"If we waited the short seven months until Anna turns eighteen would we have your approval _then_?" he asked. Charles' eyes widened in shock at the question.

"...If I answer yes _will_ you wait?" Charles asked.

"Perhaps," he answered. "But I should hope you will answer with integrity despite the outcome your honestly may or may not have on my actions," he said. "...So?" he asked. Charles took a moment to think.

"No," Charles sighed. "In seven months you will still be too old for her."

"And what age must she be before you feel her capable of being my_ intellectual equal_?" Magneto asked.

"That is not what I meant," Charles exclaimed.

"Isn't it?" Magneto asked with a raised eyebrow. "You believe she is too young to enter that sought of relationship. Why? Because you believe that I will take advantage. Do you have such little faith in her?" he asked.

"That is not-" he started to say before he cut himself off. He paused for a moment; calming himself down. "...It does not matter what I say. You will take every word and twist it to serve your own ends," Charles said.

"Perhaps your argument is the problem. You hide behind the issue of morality when in actually what you disapprove of _me. _Of course, you are entitled to your opinions, Charles, but at least have the _decency_ to admit what those are based upon," he said.

"What happened?" Kurt asked weakly. Charles turned to see that Nightcrawler had woken up. "Is Rogue, okay?" he asked.

"We are not certain, at the moment," Storm said. "Are you alright?" she asked.

"Yeah, it was just from Rogue's powers," he said. "Where is she?" he asked.

"That would be the question of the hour, Mr Wagner," Magneto said.

"This conversation has gone on long enough, Magus. I have a student to find," Charles said. Magneto nodded.

"Pass my message along to Anna, when you find her. She will have the means to contact me if she wishes," he said.

"You are not going to search for her?" Beast asked.

"I've changed my mind. I had hoped that by kidnapping Anna I would absolve her of her guilt regrading our interactions and free her of any suspicions of betrayal. But Rogue has made it clear that she will not tolerate the tactic. So, I shall abandon it. Please inform her that she can contact me at any time, for any reason," he said. Charles reluctantly nodded. "Thank you. Now, if you'll excuse me," he said before he flew up into the air. They all watched him fly into the distance.

"Charles?" Storm asked.

"We have wasted more than enough time talk for the moment. Let us find Rogue," he said.

"Again," Spike muttered under his breath as they walked towards the XM-Velocity.

"Scott? Hello, anyone?" a voice called out as they entered the XM-Velocity. Cyclops ran to the controls; he quickly put on one of the headsets.

"Hey, Kitty. Sorry, Magneto showed up," Cyclops said into it as the others took their seats. Beast came up to the controls.

"Is everything okay?" Kitty asked as Beast both put on a headset.

"Everyone here is alright, Kitty. Do you have anything to report?" Beast asked.

"Yeah, I found Rogue," Kitty said happily. Charles let out a sigh of relief.

"Shadowcat found Rogue," Beast announced.

"That is a relief," Storm said. With Magneto's departure and this new found information; the tension among his students and staff diminished almost instantly.

"Oh, thank goodness," Jean said.

"Scott," Charles said as he held his hand out; silently asking for the headset. Cyclops gave it to him. "Thank you...Kitty, is she alright?" he asked after he had put it on.

"I think so, but she's, like, dead asleep," Kitty answered.

"Rogue, is at the institute?" Beast asked surprised.

"Yeah, in her bed," Kitty said.

"We're on our way home. Let her sleep," Charles ordered.

"Yes, Professor," Kitty said.

"So, Rogue went home," Beast said as he started to their takeoff "I'm surprised, considering what Magneto said."

"I gotta feeling that what Rogue wanted him to think. Kid, played him good," Wolverine said with a smirk.

"Rogue, is definitely _resourceful_," Storm added.

"Unfortunately, so, is Magneto," Charles said.

"So, what are we gonna do?" Wolverine asked.

"I'd like to discuss all of this with Rogue first; considering whatever actions we take will no doubt effect her the most," he answered. "I know you have questions. So, I suggest that we all speak about this together once she is awake," he said.

"Get _everyone_ up to speed," Beast added.

"Precisely," Charles said.

* * *

Yay! The chapter done and posted! Thank you everyone for reading and please review! I love it when you guys review!

Speaking of which: (I've decided to go back to doing it this way. Or maybe next chapter I'll respond as I get them. I'm not sure. I think I'm just going to keep switching it up at my digression ^.^)

Lost O'Fallon Girl: Thank you! I hope you loved this chapter too! I can't wait to hear from you again!

BasiaM82: Thank you for the amazing review! I hope the chapter lives up to your expectations! Can't wait to hear from you again! :)

Sissiewest: Wow, you read fast! Thank you for reading and for the awesome review! As to the answer to your question; it is below! I hope you enjoy the little scene; I have fun with it! And I hope you enjoyed the chapter! And please feel free to keep asking questions. I love answering them!

* * *

And now for some fun with the fourth wall (because I can ^.^);

"Experimenting on children? Charles, what on earth are you talking about?" Magneto asked confused.

"Professor," Cyclops called at as he walked up to him. "There's something you should know," he said.

"Scott, what ever it is, it will have to-" Charles started to say.

"Me and Rogue were talked about Kurt. She said that she looked at what happened in those labs from both Magneto's and Mystique's point of view. There were no experiments. Kurt was just born like that," Cyclops explained.

"Do you now see why my desire to teach Rogue is so strong? Look at the _potential_ she has. For pity's sake; this information was learned by Anna somewhere between chapter five and six of _Operation Repartee_, and the readers have known this since _chapter three _of _this _story," he exclaimed. "And here we are thirty-seven chapter's in and you, Charles, are still grasping to learn plot points from that far back? What hope do you have of ever catching up? You might as well give up now," he said.

"Never, Magneto," Charles said strongly. "I will do everything in my power to protect Rogue."

"From what? My penis?" he asked amused. "Charles, this is a_ fanfic _written by an author who has spent even more time than _I_ have imaging all the fun things Anna and I could do together naked. Despite any and all sub-plots that might temporary get in the way of that. It is _inevitable_ that we will have sex again," he said.

"Again?" Charles asked shocked.

"Yes, again," he said dismissively. "Perhaps the next time we do; the author we stop being lazy and _actually_ write out the scene as opposed to just_ telling_ the audience that we've had sex," he said annoyed.

"When?" Charles asked distressed.

"At the pace the author is writing now it might not be till chapter fifty. But I'm a patience man. I can wait," he said.

"That is not what I meant," Charles said frustrated. "When did you and she have sex _before_?" he asked. Magneto chuckled.

"Oh Charles, your nativity is refreshing. Don't you realize what part of the story we are in now? This is a _non-cannon_ scene. The author, this Christa4ever, can write anything she wants; no matter how absurd or out of character the dialog may be. What use are your questions when your knowledge of this conversation will not pass on to the next chapter?"

"How do _you_ know all this?" Charles asked enraged. Magneto shrugged.

"I simply do, Charles, I simp-" Magneto started to say before Rogue and Kitty teleported onto the scene in front of Magneto. Before he had time to react; Rogue kicked him across the face; he fell to the ground.

"Wish I had gotten more sleep last night so I would've had the strength to do that more in the actual chapter," Rogue said as she and Kitty walked over to the others.

"Rogue, Kitty, thank goodness you're both alright," Storm said.

"Rogue, why didn't you tell me about you're findings on Kurt's past?" Charles asked.

"We've been busy," she exclaimed.

"Restating the same facts time and time again would be boring for the readers and our dear author is a review whore, so to speak," Magneto stated from the ground.

"What the fuck does that even mean?" Rogue asked.

"I would explain but the definition of a review is well known to any who would be reading this story. Stating the obvious is hardly ever interesting to read," Magneto said as he got to his feet. "Speaking of pleasing the fan-base, Ms. Pride," he said as he walked up to them, "how did you know Rogue and Mr. Wagner were siblings back in chapter three?" he asked.

"Hmm, I- ah, I just knew?" Kitty asked nervously.

"That is hardly a suitable answer," Magneto reprimanded.

"Max, leave her alone," Rogue said; moving to stand in front of Kitty. "I told Kitty, Kurt was like a brother to me after I found out he was. I needed someone to talk to and Kitty was willing to listen. But after I got it all out; I wasn't ready to tell Kurt. Kitty understood that and didn't tell anyone. She was waiting for me to bring it up again; which didn't happen until chapter three," Rogue said.

"That's better," Magneto said satisfied. "Now, I believe I should return to debating Charles into the ground, and you, Anna, should go wherever it was you were; so that the fanfic may continue," he said.

"Yeah, I guess," Rogue sighed. "I'm still tired anyway. I could use some more sleep," she said as she took Kitty's hand.

"Bye, see you next chapter," Kitty smiled before Rogue ported them away.


	39. Chapter 38

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Thirty-Eight

Rogue opened her eyes quickly, sitting up with a start.

_'I gotta go find ev-'_ she started to think.

"Rogue?" a voice asked. Rogue turned her head to see the Professor sitting next to her bed. He had a book in his hands.

"Is everyone okay?" Rogue asked panicked.

"Yes, everyone is alright," the Professor said calmly. Rogue let out a sigh in relief as he closed his book. "How are you feeling?" he asked concerned as he placed it on his lap.

"Better than I was," she said as she lifted her body up into a sitting position. She raised her arms above her head as she yawned. "How long was I out of it?" she asked as she lowered them to her sides.

"A little over twenty hours," he answered sadly.

"That long, huh?" she asked with a sigh as she turned her body to sit facing him.

"You were clearly exhausted," he said. "You didn't even take off your shoes," he said. She blinked surprised by the comment before she glanced down at her feet; they were shoeless now. "Ororo removed them when we returned yesterday," he explained. "It was the second thing I noticed," he said.

"What was the first?" she asked.

"...The blood on your fingers," he said gravely as he gazed down at them. Her eye's followed; they was dried red crusted on and under her figure nails. Almost looked like nail-polish to her.

"It's Magneto's not mine," she said quietly.

"Logan attested to that fact and I saw the cut on Magneto's face," he said. Her eyes quickly moved to his.

"Magneto w-?" she started to ask alarmed.

"It's alright, Rogue. He did not harm anyone," the Professor said quickly as made eye contact.

"... So, what _did_ he do?" she asked.

"He _talked..._ for a while, about you. We debated the morality of whats he wants from you," he answered.

"How'd that go?" she asked dryly.

"About as well as expected," he said; his tone equally as dry.

_'I need to see that conversation...can't ask Prof though,' _she thought to herself. There was silent between them for a long moment.

"I considered taking you to the hospital more than once," he said.

"Doctor's there wouldn't have know what to do with me," she huffed. "...What stopped you?" she asked as she glanced up at him.

"The doctors wouldn't have know what to do with you," he said with a small smile that didn't quite reach his eyes. She returned the smile anyway. His facial expression almost immediately returned to normal "In a while I would like Hank to run a few tests. I would like to ensure that this was caused by physical and psychological exhaustion. Both of which are perfectly understandable given everything you have had to endure," he said.

"Yeah, that's fine. I-" she started to say as she was hit again with a surge of guilt over leaving them to deal with Magneto alone. Tears formed in her eyes as she made eye contact with the Professor. "I'm sorry about not going back to the woods. But I knew if I did and Magneto showed up that he'd just kidnap me again and there really wasn't anything you could do to stop him, and I was so tired I knew I wasn't gonna be able to put up a fight this time-" she ranted.

"Rogue, Rogue, it's alright. You were right to return to the institute. It is my job to protect you," he said strongly. "Not the other way around. I am the one who needs to apologize," he said.

"No, you don't. I'm the one wh-" she started to say.

"Who has displayed more fear and panic these past few days than I have ever seen you in," he said before sighing. "And I know some of the horrors you have had to stand witness to," he said. She shuttered a few images from her nightmares were creeping up on her. She took a deep breath pushing them back.

"Are yo-" he started to ask.

"I'm fine," she quickly as she remade eye contact. "You were saying?" she asked.

"I am sorry," he said. "I would like to say more but I doubt you like to hear my explanations twice. When you're ready I would like to call a meeting to get everyone up to speed on these issues," he said.

"Who's gonna be there?" she asked.

"All of the staff, of course, Scott, and Jean. If there's anyone else you would like to be there," he said.

_'Can't ask Kitty to come without inviting Kurt along too, but I don't know if I want him knowing some of the stuff that I can tell them about,'_ she thought. She glanced up at the Professor. "There are some details, about everything, that I'd still like to keep to myself. So, if I get vague," she started to say.

"I'll understand," he said.

"And everyone else?" she asked.

"Will respect your privacy, I'm sure," Charles said.

"Then Kitty and Kurt can come if they want," Rogue said.

"Very well," the Professor said with a nod. "I will ask them. I will be in sub-level seven. Come there when you're ready and I'll call the others," he said as he turned to leave.

"Okay," she muttered as he left the room; closing the door behind him. '_I am _not_ looking forward to this conversation,' _she thought with a sigh.

_'I doubt you would be. I've found you rarely enjoy censoring yourself.'_ the fragment of Magneto offered as she stood up.

_'Who does?' _she asked as she started to gather all she would need to take a shower. '_Thanks for your help yesterday, Max.' _

_'My pleasure,'_ he said; she could hear the smile in his voice. _'It it weren't for fatigue I believe you could have stirred those notions independently. You were doing quite well for yourself before I offered you aid,'_ she exited the room.

_'Not well enough,' _she thought with a sigh as she walked towards the bathroom she saw Scott coming out of it.

_'And now is your chance to gain the knowledge you seek,'_ he said.

'_I know,'_ she thought. "Hey, Scott," she said with a smile.

* * *

About an hour and a half later Rogue opened her eyes with a huge grin on her face; she was laying on her bed. After she had taken a shower; she had replayed the events of the day before from Scott's point of view.

_'I said entirely too much,'_ the fragment commented.

"Yeah, you really fucking did," she said happily.

_'You're going to use every word against me, aren't you?'_ Max asked.

"Yup,"she grinned. He sighed; she laughed in response.

_'Anna, about our conversation yesterday. There was something about your father I was going to tell you but I was interrupted by your escape plan. Do you wish to hear it now?'_ he asked. She paused for a moment; her good mood being dampened but the topic._ 'It is favorable news... for him at the very least,'_ he added.

_'He used to send me letters?'_ she asked.

_'I cannot testify to the plural, but there one time I recall back in October of nineteen- ninety-five, I think it was. Victor was working in one of my bases in Northern Siberia. You father wished to sent you a birthday card but the nearest city was more than a week's journey. He asked for the time off to make that trip. Instead I spent two hours flying there and back for him,'_ he said.

She took a moment to replay what he had just said from his point of view. He wasn't lying.

_'Why?'_ she asked incredulously.

_'That year I was feeling a bit... _sentimental _about fatherhood. Only a few months before I found out about Pietro's and Wanda's_ existence_... For the first time in decades I was a father again,'_ he explained. '..._And on the other hand, I couldn't afford to let Creed go for the amount of time. It made much more sense for me to delver it,'_ he added.

_'_Of course_, it did,'_ she smiled sarcastically. He ignored the tone in her voice.

_'I cannot say whom fault it was that you did not receive that letter, but he did try to contact you at least once,'_ he finished. Rogue let out a sigh.

"...What's my Aunt's last name?" Rogue asked suddenly.

_'What?'_ he asked; completely taken by surprise.

_'My Aunt Carrie; what's her last name?'_ she asked again.

_'How do you know that?'_ he asked confused.

_'Does it honestly matter? I know that and more; you cannot erase my knowledge. It is mine to do with as I please,'_ she repeated.

_'_I_ didn't say that. _He_ did,'_ he said frustrated.

_'You would've said it if ya were him,'_ she pointed out; he sighed._ 'Look, I don't feel like spending hours looking through your memory trying to find_ one_ name. So, just answer the damn question,' _she said.

_'...Her name is Carrie Raven,'_ he said.

_'Seriously?'_ she asked with a raised eyebrow.

_'Yes,'_ he said.

_'What about my father?'_ she asked.

_'I'm afraid I do not know, Owen's last name. Irene would not tell me. The only reason I know your Aunt's is because I read the newspaper article on your mother's car crash,'_ he said.

"Car crash?"she repeated quietly.

_'Yes,'_ he replied gravely. Both him and Irene knew who her mother was. That she had a father and Aunt who may have wanted to raise her. Anger filled her. Why had she been denied a chance to be raised by them?

"Why did you bother reading it?" she asked. "What were you sentimental about that month?" she asked angry.

_'It wasn't out of sentiment. My curiosity was out of _rage_. Back then Irene and I were working together to gather young-'_

"Mutants who's power she was detecting from her visions. You brought them to Amiela's. I know all that already," she said annoyed.

_'How do you-'_ he started to say again.

"Never you mind how I know. Get the part about my mother," she said impatiently.

_'I was in the business of finding orphan mutants loving homes to live in. Until then Irene had told me of children in orphanages-' _

_'I know that's how you find Todd and Lance. Move on,'_ she yelled.

_'But when Irene asked me to retrieve you she sent me to the site of the car crash. I should have been suspicious when she gave me a specific time but I still trusted her back then. This was the first time she ever gave me cause not to,'_ he said.

_'Show me,'_ she demanded.

_'Anna, no, I-' _he started to protest.

_Now,' _she commanded.

_'You do not need the image of your mother's _corpse _added your nightmares,' _he said desperately.

_'I don't dream anymore, you know that,' _she said.

_'You are seeking your independents from my counterpart, correct?' _he asked.

_'Hell yes,'_ she thought.

_'You have been seeking independent with your own powers?'_ he asked.

_'You know that,' _she pointed out enraged.

_'Then one day, you alone will have to confront your nightmares._ Please_ do not add this image to your collectives of visions to battle. I am sorry, my girl, but I love you far too much to aid you in this endeavor. If you must see it, you will receive no help from me," _he said. He gasped as she started to pull into his.

_'Anna, wait,' _he exclaimed.

_'What?' _she shouted annoyed

_'I know what is it like to see my loved ones killed before my eyes. You have experienced first hand what Ms. Munroe suffered through. She _suppressed_ those memories and has been left with a fear she does not understand. Never-the-less I would wager that if given the choice she would make the trade her sub-consciousness made for her as a child... _I _would make that trade,' _he said strongly.

_'I thought knowledge was power,'_ she argued.

_'It is and I am not denying you knowledge, my girl, I will explain all I know if you would allow me to finish a sentence with interruption?_ Please_, Anna, this is one memory of mine you do not need to _see_,' _he said strongly. She paused.

_'..Fine, tell me everything,'_ she ordered. He let out a sigh of relief.

_'It was very late in the evening; which I thought nothing of when Irene had given me the time. I had assumed that I would be able to take you unseen better at that hour and that Irene had looked and picked the best hour in which to take you. So, I arrived at the address and was horrified but what I found.' _

_'There had been an accident in front of the house; two cars had collided. I went to see if I there was anyone still alive. Immediately, I heard you crying and took you out of the car. Thankfully, the child's car seat you were in had saved your life. I saw your mother next; it was clear that she was deceased and had been for at least an hour. I went to the other car and there was man; dead. I learned later that he, Michael Jones, had been driving intoxicated and was the cause of the accident.' _

_'I went to the residents; surprised that no one there had called for help. I soon learned that know one lived there. That I had the child I was supposed to collect in my arms already. I was enraged. I had created Ameila's home for Wayward Children to give young mutants a family. Not to steal them from the one's they already had.' _

_'I could have stopped the car crush. If Irene had explained the situation; I would have saved your mother. I believe Irene knew that; which is why she kept me in the dark. I returned, ready to confront Irene, but she had left. She knew how I would react. With her power's, of course, she knew. Unfortunately, those abilities of hers kept me from location her,'_ he said.

"Bullshit," she shouted_. 'I saw you two together a year later. You held me on your_ lap_ as you two talked __about who I was gonna live wit-_' she stopped herself and pulled into his mind.

_'Anna,' _he protested again.

"Relax, I'm not looking at that memory,"she muttered before she continued. She knew exactly which of his memories she wanted to see and able to put it up within seconds.

"**Wait," Magneto said to Irene; from his seat at the kitchen table; Rogue's younger self sitting on his lap. After a moment Ameila walked back into the room. **

"**Thank you," Ameila said as she took Rogue from Magneto.**

"**My pleasure, Ameila," he said. **

"**I'll just be back in a minute. It's time for her nap," Ameila said with a smile. **

"**Please do not rush on my account," Magneto said as Ameila walked out of the room with Rogue. He waited until he could no longer hear her foot steps before he asked "Why should she not be raised by family? You have already denied her the chance to raised by her mother why should I allow you take her Aunt from her as well?" he asked. **

"**Because the women is old-fashioned. I have seen visions of her beating the girl with a brush; among other things. Anna will grow up, abused and feeling unloved; by either of those people. She will run away from home an early age and end up here either way," she said.**

"**And how would her mother have raised her? Owen could have been dealt with if you had only explained," he said; attempting to keep his anger in check. **

"**Magneto, that was-" she started to say.**

"**You made me an accomplice to your murder, Irene," he said as he stared at her. "It had been over a decade since I seen bloodshed. I preferred it that way," he said.**

"**You can still claim that after what you did last month? You have more blood on your hands than I do. You have seen the means our enemies are willing to use," she said.**

"**You were apart of those means," he said.**

"**Only until you located me, as I foresaw you would. Because of us The Black Womb Project is no ****more and those who would seek to hurt our young charges are gone. You saw what Dr. Milbury was willing to do to his own son. You saved future mutants from those horrors," she said. **

"**Only because I let my anger get the better of me," he said. A child had been burning; as it turned out from the boy's own powers; but he hadn't known that. All he had seen was his Anya's suffering.**

"**You did right," she said. **

"**Irene, I do not wish to have a debate on morality with you," he said dryly.**

"**The war we fight-" she started to say.**

"**Is now one of knowledge. In which we have a head start; the advantage," he said.**

"**Which is why you need me Magneto. I was gone a year. How many children did you place in that time?" she asked. **

"**Only the one's already planned before your disappearance," he said bitterly. "Why else would I consent to your return?" he asked. **

"**You've already stated that you would not lose your caretaker for the sake of one child. But I have allowed this facility to remain dormant for a year for Rogue's sake. I will do so for another. Her upbringing is something I have contemplated for a very long time; exploring possible futures for hours on end. You may not share my feelings, yet, but she is very important to me, Magneto. I only have her's and mutant-kinds best interest at heart. What she needs is time. Time to grow up. Let her do so here for a while longer," she finished.**

"**How much longer?" he asked dryly. **

"**I will let you know when," she said.**

"**Irene, you try my patients. I should lock you in a cel-" he said.**

"**And then I will refuse to give you information you need. We have been through these threats before Magneto and we have agreed that I am to stay here until our work here is done. Do you wish to alter our deal?" she asked. **

"**No," he said through his teeth. "Know, Irene, that if you do leave again you will not have the head start you did last year," he said; malice in his voice. She laughed.**

"**I was wondering what the cameras were for," she said with a smile. "I have no intention of leaving yet. I will let you know when," she repeated.**

"**When you will leave or when Anna will have parents?" he asked. **

"**Both," she answered. They was silence between them until Amelia returned. **

* * *

Rogue pulled out of the memory tears in her eyes.

_'You know what happened after that,'_ he said. She nodded in shock.

_'Yeah, Irene came to live with us when I first moved in with Raven and Victor. She was my _nanny._ They would go off doing god knows what, for you, for whoever was hiring them. But Irene was always there when they weren't,' _she thought. _'She left a few times. Longest was two months.'_

_'That was in ninety-one, I remember. I needed her at Amelia's then,'_ he thought. She listened to his comment half-halfheartedly. Her mind still gasping the implications of what she had just learned.

_'She said yet. 'You may not share my feelings, yet, but she is very important to me,'_ she quoted. _'She knew, everything. That my name was gonna be Rogue. What was gonna happen with you and my parents,'_ she thought in shock. "I spent five years living with her feeling unloved by my parents and did she try and help. No," she exclaimed. "She could have fucking told me that Victor had tried to sent me letters. It would've helped," she shouted.

_'Unless, she was hiding them from you on purpose,'_ he pointed out. She laid back down.

_'Do you really think she'd do that?'_ she asked.

_'She has hidden far worse,' _he reminded her.

_'…She killed my mother,'_ she thought overwhelmed._ 'She- she-,' _she tried to think. That realization was the last straw; she let go crying opening. She turned on her side as she cried; her eyes closing tightly.

* * *

"Rogue?" a voice asked; she felt a hand on her shoulder. She opened her eyes as she turned over.

"He- hey Kitty," she muttered as she sat up.

"What's wrong?" she asked.

"E-everything," she mumbled.

"Here," Kitty said gently as she held out a tissue.

"Thanks," she managed to say as took it. She spent moment rubbing her eyes and blowing her nose. "You got anymore?" she asked.

"A whole box," she said as she reached down and put it on the bed.

"Thanks," she muttered again as she took another and blew her nose. Kitty put her around on Rogue's back. "Kitty, I couldn't handle hurting you by accident right-" she started to say before she broke into tears again. The word accident being enough to set her off at that moment. Kitty kept her hand where it was.

"Well, that's totally easy to fix," Kitty said.

"Easy?" she asked in shock

"Yeah, can I borrow a pair of gloves?" she asked. Rogue nodded. "Okay, I'll be back in, like, ten seconds. Kurt, close your eyes," she ordered. Rogue glanced across over the room. Kurt was sitting on Kitty bed. He waved at her with a sad smile before he did as Kitty ordered. She looked up at Kitty; she was by the closet. She pulled off her shirt and threw it in the hamper at the foot of the closet. She pulled out a turtle-neck shirt and put it on. "Okay, Kurt," she said as she went over to their night stand and pulled out a pair of gloves. She sat on the bed as she put them on. "Okay?" Kitty asked.

"Yeah," she said again before Kitty hugged her. She wrapped her arms around her roommate and held her tightly as she let go again; crying deeply. She felt her brother take a seat behind her; he put his hand on her back.

After a few minutes Rogue pulled back.

"Here," Kitty said handing her another tissue. Rogue went three more of them until she was done wiping her face off. "Do you wanna talk about it?" she asked.

"Yeah," she mumbled.

"So, what Magneto do now?" Kurt asked.

"Nothing, I guess. This time it's Irene," she said before she blew her nose again. There was knock at the door.

"Rogue, it's Ororo, Charles," Ororo said.

"And Logan," he added.

"May we come in?" Ororo asked. Rogue nodded.

"Yeah," Kitty said before the door opened and her instructors piled into the small room. Logan and Ororo went to sit on Kitty's bed. The Professor sat near the doorway.

"Prof, I think you're right. I should stop looking for a while. I don't think I can handle another fucking revelation," she muttered.

"What did you find this time?" The professor asked gently.

Rogue took a moment to tell them; she broke down a few more times as she tried to say it all out loud. But after about twenty minutes they now knew everything she did about the death of her mother, Irene's part in it and Amelia's Home for Wayward Children.

Kitty had her arms around Rogue shoulder and on her other hand on her arm. Rogue's head resting against Kitty's body slightly. The physical contact was one of the few things keeping her going.

"So, I spend all those years loving the women who killed my birth mother," she finished softly. And although she felt the urge to cry again; she didn't; there were no tears left in her.

There was silence for a few minutes. She could feel her family members glancing at each other awkwardly; searching for reassurance as they tried to figure out what they were supposed to in response. Kitty was the only who got it right; hugging her as tightly as she could.

"My God," the Professor muttered under his breath. "There are no words strong enough to console in a situation like this."

"I need a phone," Rogue said.

"I'll be right back," Kurt said before he teleported.

"Who are you-" the Professor started to ask before Kurt teleported back into the room; again sitting next to Rogue. As he handed it to her; Kitty loosened her hug; freeing her arm. Rogue quickly dialed a number. She placed it to her ear. She listened to it ring three times before he picked up.

"Hello?" a voice asked.

"You were right. Irene is a home-wrecking cunt, " Rogue said strongly.

"That bitch hide my letters?" Victor asked in anger.

"She killed my birth mother," Rogue screamed.

"That Bit- w- wait, she what?" he asked confused.

"She killed my mother. She saw that Priscilla was gonna die in a car crash and she could have told Magneto to leave an hour fucking earlier and he could have saved her life. But no, she had to be the one to raise me. So, my mother had to _die_. For my best interest- fucking bullshit- for mutant-kinds best interest. I don't give a shit. She could protect mutant kind without murdering a women she had never even fucking met," she yelled. There was silence for a moment.

"...You want me kill her?" he asked. Rogue's eyes widen in shock. "I will so fucking kill her. I've been looking for a good enough excuse," he said. Rogue thought about it for a moment before sighing.

"... No," she groaned. "I hate her and everything, but if I ask you to do that then I'm no better than she is. I don't want that. I don't want you ta kill her... Thanks though," she said with a smile.

"You change your mind you let me know, okay?" he asked.

"Okay," she muttered. There was silence between them for moment and Rogue was trying her hardest to avoid the gaze at any of her instructors in the room; the looks of disgust were more than she could handle at the moment.

"Rogue, you wanna hunt her down and just punch her a couple a times?" he asked. The question took her completely by surprise. Rogue couldn't help herself she started laughing.

"What?" she exclaimed with a smile.

"I'm serious, Kiddo, I don't have to kill her I could just make her hurt a little," he offered.

"I should so not be laughing right now," Rogue said through her laughter.

"Why the fuck not?" Victor asked. "Look, you, me and Graydon. You say the word and we'll fucking go. We'll find the bitch and we'll each take a swing at her. She hurt you the most so you get to punch her first," he said.

"I don't think Gray's gonna wanna leave his job and Emma for that," she said.

"Sure, he will and who says he gotta leave her. He's a lawyer. They're both politician. They fucking love that shit," he exclaimed. "It'll be a _family trip;_ it'll be fun. On the way back we'll stop for food. You still love Big Macs?" he asked.

"Yeah, yeah, I still love Big Macs," she said with a grin; as she tried to hold back her laughter. "This conversation is so fucked up," she muttered.

"So, what you're dealing with right now," he said his tone more serious than it had been. "It's unbelievably fucked up what she did to you. You deserve a little retribution," he said.

"Even if it's only hypothetical," she said with a smile.

"Yeah, whatever the fuck that means," he muttered. She gave out a short laugh.

"Victor, would you like ta go get literal Big Mac?"

"What we gotta read it or something?" he asked. She broke out into laughter again. "What is there braille in the sesame seeds or some shit like that?" he asked as she continued to laugh. She started coughed because she was laughing so hard. "Anna, listen I was kidding," he said as Kurt teleported out of the room. "I know what literal means and I would love to go get dinner or lunch or whatever the fuck time is it with you. Whatever, you want, okay, Rogue?" he asked as Kurt teleported back in with a bottle of water.

"Okay," she said as she started to calm down; Kurt handing her the bottle with a smile. "Thanks," she said to both of them. Kurt smiled at her.

"Your welcome. So, what day you wanna do this?" he asked as she opened she top and took a sip.

"Tomorrow, okay?" she asked.

"Tomorrow fucking _great_," he said; she smiled for a moment before she realized that he couldn't pick her up from the institute; she quickly took another sip of water. "...How about we meet there?" he asked.

"Okay," she said relieved

"There's one on ninety-five; just outta town," he said.

"I'll see ya there. Like six a'clock tomorrow," she said.

"Six a'clock it is. Ya okay, to go. We can talk some more. If you wanna bitch about how much of a bitch Irene is I'm the one to fucking talk to," he said. She laughed again.

"I'm better than I was before I called you. God, I can't believe how much I really, fucking, needed that," she said in disbelief as she laughed softly.. "Really, I'm better, now. I can handle shit now. I'll see you tomorrow, okay, Victor? she asked.

"Ya sure?" he asked.

"Yeah," she said.

"Alright, see ya tomorrow," he said.

"Bye," she with a smile before she hung up. She let out a sigh happily as she put the phone on the bed. "Okay, so I actually have a father," she muttered. She took a large sip of the water. "Hm, so when do you wanna call the meeting?" Rogue as she glanced up at the Professor.

"Rogue we do not have to call this meeting today," he said.

"I just wanna get it over with. I wanna go to school tomorrow without worrying about having this conversation," she said.

"You do not have to go to school tomorrow either. You can take a few days to-" the Professor started to say.

"I can't sit around here doing nothing. I'll go crazy," she exclaimed. "I'll probably call Magneto," she said honestly. She could see the surprise in his expression. "I'd rather go to school and pretend everything's okay. So, let's just go have this conversation," she said.

"Are you certain?" he asked. She nodded. "Very well. Let's more this meeting to the sub-level," he said. She nodded.

* * *

Yay! Another chapter finished! I love you all for reading; please let me know what you think of it?

Quick notes;

(1) In biggest marvel universe (Earth 616) Rogue's last name has not been revealed. However in a few other universes (X-Men Forever, and X-Campus) Rogue is referred to as Anna Marie Raven and Anna Raven. But on Marvel's website Anna Raven is listed as one of Rogue's aliases. If it's revealed to be her real name that could easily be changed. So, whether or not this will become Rogue's real last name remained to be seen.

For a moment, I considered using Rogue's last name from the movies. However, given Rogue's history her family shown there was most likely a foster one. So, I choose to instead give her Aunt the last name given in the comics. If Marvel ever declares a last name for her I will most likely go back and change that line of the story and be done with it. However, given their track record for declaring real names; (over twenty for Rogue's first and middle and over FORTY for Magneto's full) we could have quite a wait on our hands.

(2)And if any of you are interested in getting in on some current comics and seeing some cannon Rogue/Magneto interactions; go read X-Men Legacy 248 and 249! Especially, X-Men Legacy 249! Thank you again, BasialM82!

(3) Yes, I know I spend way too much time worrying all the tiny details of this fic and making things as cannon as possible but seriously go read X-Men Legacy 249! It's totally worth three bucks! ^.^

Thank you for reading!

Raven35link: thank you for all the reviews! I giggled at your review of chapter 34! I hadn't even thought of that :) Not it matters if they're blood in it; considering where the car is now. :) I really hope you enjoy this chapter too! Please let me know what you think?


	40. Chapter 39

I have to run to work and didn't want to wait another day before posting so if there are a few more mistakes in this chapter that's why! and I'm sorry. Speaking of which would anyone like to beta this story for me? Please let me know and together we can rid this story of grammer errors!

* * *

Please enjoy!

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Thirty-Nine

Rogue sat with everyone in sub-level seven. She had come to this meeting fully armed with a box of tissues and two water bottles; but for some reason she didn't feel that they would be enough to comfort her.

Kitty's hand on her back was helping; she was rubbing her hand back and forth about an inch and a half. Almost reminded her of how Magneto touched her; except she knew that Kitty didn't seek anything from her; that this touch wasn't the gateway for more intimate caresses. Her roommate was solely attempting to console her; to help her through this.

The lightheaded feeling she had been experiencing for the last twenty minutes, however, wasn't helping anything. But she was trying to ignore it. She really did just want to get this conversation over with.

_'Anna, when was the last time you ate?'_ Max asked.

Rogue eyes widened in shock for a moment before she asked herself, _'Oh god, when _was_ the last time I ate?' _

_'You tell me,' _Max said.

"So, where do we begin?" Mr. McCoy asked.

"I suppose we should start, if you have no objections, Rogue," the Professor said as he glanced over at her, "with your first few interactions with the fragment."

"Huh? You want me to go back that far? Why?" Rogue asked; caught off guard.

_'An-,'_ Max started to say.

_'Later,'_ she told him quickly.

"Yesterday, Magneto referenced conversations that you and the fragment had," the Professor explained.

"Huh? …right, that whole thing about me being _his_ student," Rogue said while rolling her eyes. It was the truth but the way he had taunted the Professor with that knowledge made her want to roll her eyes. She was the teenager and he, the seventy-five year old, was the one acting like a child.

"Rogue, how do you know what was said?" Ororo asked her eye lite up in surprise.

"Oh, Rogue asked if she could absorb me to see the conversation," Scott answered.

"So, I saw everything that happened yesterday," Rogue added.

"With your powers you can actually_ view_ recent memories?" Mr. McCoy asked.

"Yeah, but not just recent memories;_ all of them;_ mine or anyone else's I've absorbed," she said.

"You have absorbed me in the past. So, in theory you could tell me what I had for breakfast on my ninth birthday?" Mr. McCoy asked.

"Not in theory," she said as closed her eyes and pulled up his mind and pulled up the memory; having a date to concentrate on, she found, made it easier to find some memories. She watched a few seconds of Mr. McCoy's younger self's morning. "You had blueberry pancakes, a glass of milk," she said before grinning, "and when your mother wasn't looking you took a finger full of icing from your birthday cake," she finished with a short laugh as she pulled out of the memory and opened her eyes.

"That was the start of great birthday," Mr. McCoy said with a grin.

"That's pretty impressive, kid," Logan said.

"Ah, thanks," she said.

_'You're surprised? I've been telling you this for _months,_' _Max said.

_'Yeah, I know but it's weird hearing someone else say it,' _Rogue told him.

"Rogue?" the Professor asked strongly.

"Yeah?" Rogue asked as she glanced up at him. The Professor let out a sigh. "What were you saying?" she asked.

"I agreed that your powers are impressive but the fact that _Magneto_ has knowledge from conversations he, hopefully, was not present for begs the question; _how_?" he asked. Rogue's eyes widen in fear as the Professor said "hopefully."

_'He_ cannot_ find out that Max was the fragment,' _she thought in fear.

"Professor, what do you mean by 'hopefully'?" Jean asked.

_'Apparently, you were not the only one who caught that detail,'_ Max commented dryly.

"It is only a suspicion that I would prefer not to fully vocalize until I am certain that it has validity," the Professor said. Rogue took a deep breath.

_'This conversation is getting way too dangerous,'_ Rogue thought to herself; as she tried to suppress her fear.

_'Then say nothing more on the matter and end it,'_ Max said. _'Charles offered you time to process. You should take it and go eat something.'_

_'Maybe, you're right,'_ she thought.

"Rogue, is that alright?" the Professor asked; from his tone of voice she had a feeling that wasn't the first time he asked that question.

"Sorry," Rogue said quickly as she made eye contact with him. "I already told you that I'm done looking for a while. I can't handle anymo- Prof, I'm sorry, I changed my mind. I can't handle this today. I thought I could but I can't," she said.

"It's alright. Honestly, I wasn't expecting to get very far into this conversation," the Professor said before she took a deep breath. "Rogue, would it be alright if I went over everything that I know?" he asked.

"Do I have to be here for it?" Rogue asked.

"No," he answered.

"Yeah, that's fine then," she said.

"Rogue, do you, like, want me to come with you?" Kitty asked.

"Or me?" Kurt asked.

"Thanks, but I'm okay. You two stay and listen to what Prof has to say, okay?" Rogue asked.

"Are you sure?" Kurt asked.

"Yeah," Rogue nodded with a smile. "I think I wanna be alone for a few minutes. Maybe go get some fresh air," she said.

"You're going outside?" the Professor asked alarmed.

"Yeah, in a little while," she answered; confused by his concern.

"I'm afraid, I must ask you not to for the moment," he said. Rogue raised an eyebrow.

"Why can't she go outside?" Logan asked irritated. Rogue thought about for a second before she let out a sigh.

"How many cameras did that asshole have set up?" Rogue asked as she crossed her arms over her chest.

"Cameras?" Ororo asked alarms; looks of panic and fear crossed everyone's expressions.

"Only two," the Professor answered quickly.

"_Only_ two?" Logan exclaimed in disbelief. "Magneto's spying on us?" he asked outraged.

"Why haven't we destroyed them yet?" Scott asked.

"Because two cameras positioned at the entrances are harmless," Rogue answered as she glanced at Scott. "_Annoying_, but harmless. Since we know where they are it'll be easy for me to get past them unseen. An image inducer would be prefect if I wanna go to school. Assuming Eric hasn't had Pietro set up any cameras there too," she said softly before sighing.

_'Anna, I believe it has been over a day since you have eaten anything. You should not allow yourself to be coxed into another conversation,'_ Max said.

_'I'll eat in little while. I ain't even hungry,'_ Rogue thought; before Max sighed. "Look, if we destroy them then Eric might switch tactics. He might come here to see for himself whether I came back or not; which I don't think anyone here wants_ that_ to happen. It's the right move ta leave them where they are for now; ta _let_ him think his tactic is gonna work for him," she finished as she glanced over at the Professor. She noticed surprise in his expression.

"Y- yes, precisely," the Professor agreed before he looked away from her; contemplating.

"Wait," Kurt said, "I thought Magneto said he wasn't going to kidnap you again."

"He did, Kurt, but kidnapping and _staking_ are two different things. He probably just wants to know where I am. Hopefully, he'll leave it at that," Rogue said.

"Do you believe he will 'leave it at that?'" Mr. McCoy asked. She thought about for a second.

"...No," she groaned, "and I don't think he's done trying to kidnap me either; despite what he said ta ya all. I mean, I could be wrong," she started to say.

"I doubt that you are," the Professor gravely. "I agree that it is a question of _when_ Magneto will attempt to abduct you again; not if," he said. Rogue let out a long sigh as she leaned her head back against her chair's head-rest; closing her eyes. The dizzying feeling was starting to get to her again.

"So, what are we gonna do about it?" Logan asked.

"Way I see it. I got three options- well, four- okay five, but those two I ain't really considering. They're not worth mentioning," Rogue said.

"What are the three options that are?" Jean asked as Rogue took a deep breath as she prepared to force herself to open her eyes.

_'Anna, please stop hurting yourself. If you insist upon having this conversation before attending your own needs, at the very least, you can speak with your eyes closed,'_ Max said. She let out a sigh as she leaned her head back again.

"Kid, you alright?" Logan asked.

"Just a little light headed. So, I'm gonna stay like this for a while," Rogue answered.

"Rogue, if you would like we could relocate this meeting somewhere else, perhaps the kitchen?" the Professor asked.

"No, I_ really_ ain't hungry, right now," Rogue muttered slightly annoyed; she hated answering the same question over and over again. "The first option is waiting for Eric ta try and kidnap me again. And when he does find a way to stop him like I did yesterday. Which I really don't wanna do either. The fear and _anticipation_ are too fucking much. I'd rather deal with the situation now then wait for _him_ to dictate the terms of our next confrontation. Plus, with Magneto ya can't use the same strategy twice. He learns from his mistakes; makes sure that his enemies don't have access to the resources they used to defeat him again," she said.

"Specifically, meaning?" Mr. McCoy asked.

"Next time he won't kidnap me until he knows for a fact that I don't have access to my powers," Rogue answered.

"That ain't an option," Logan said strongly.

"Agreed," the Professor said strongly.

"What's the second one?" Kurt asked.

"Call Magneto and try talking him out of kidnapping altogether," Rogue said.

"Do you think you could?" Scott asked.

"You totally should have seen her the other day," Kitty started to say. "Rogue asked to borrow his car and then he said- hey what was it he said again?" she asked.

"How very forward of you, Anna. Assuming I would trust you with such a valuable possession," Rogue quoted dryly.

"Yeah, and then Rogue_ yelled_ at Magneto," Kitty said; she could hear the smile in her roommates voice. "Seriously, you were like _fearless_," she said.

"Cause he didn't give a _shit _about the car," Rogue said annoyed.

"Rogue, would you mind relaying what you said to Magneto?" the Professor asked.

"I said; we both know that you don't give two shits about that car. It's just a hunk of metal. You'd dismantle it in a second if you needed to. And as for being forward; you're the one who likes to take liberties they ain't entitled to. This afternoon you stood on the sidelines and watched as we fought those soldiers. You could have stepped in and ended that fight at any time. Instead you choose to trust us with it's outcome. And you know what? Kitty ended up saving your son'slifewhile you stood by and did nothing," Rogue quoted.

"Oh yeah, Quicksilver totally Magneto's _son_," Kitty said.

"Whoa, really?" Scott asked.

"Yup," Kitty said.

"I guess I could see the family resemblance," Jean said.

"Rogue if you would please continue?" the Professor asked.

"Then I said; so, I'm I being a little forward? Maybe. And ya know what? I'd like to make another assumption. I don't think that you want to seat in a car with the two of us for hours making awkward small talk. But I know that you're too much of agentlemanto abandon us on the side of the road. So, let me do you anotherfavor. I'll borrow your car for the night and drive your son's lifesaver home; safe and sound. So, we can all get on with our lives," she finished quoting. "I called Eric out on his bullshit. I was right and he knew it," Rogue said.

"Rogue, you did much more than that," Mr. McCoy. "You're argument was very sound," he commented.

"Thanks, Mr. McCoy," Rogue said with a small smile. "Anyway, so, maybe I can talk Eric out of kidnapping too. I mean there are a whole lotta reasons why_ he_ should be against abduction and he's been ignoring most of them because he _really_ likes me and he actually _wants_ to spend time with me. And he knows that I like him too," Rogue admitted.

"In his mind it's everyone _else_ that gets in the way of us spending more time together," Rogue said. "Which is one of the reasons he wants ta get me alone. But he can't keep doing this; fucking kidnapping me," she exclaimed before sighing. "I mean, I know what he wants; the potential he sees in me and what he hopes our relationship might evolve into someday. But the way he's going about it is all wrong."

"And in the back of Eric's mind he's _knows_ that the means he's using are tainting any future relationship we might have together. But those warnings coming from his conscience aren't _strong_ enough of a deterrent to keep him from doing what's he doing. So, if I want him to stop then _I'm_ gonna have ta be his conscience. I'm gonna have ta tell him what he already knows until those concerns are so loud that he_ can't _ignore them," Rogue finished.

"Do you believe that Magneto would be willing to listen to you?" Ororo asked.

"He has listened to her arguments before," Mr. McCoy pointed out. "And if the argument you craft is as sound as the one you've used in the past. There is a chance he might listen to reason again," he said.

"Maybe," Rogue said. "But borrowing a car and taking him outta doing something he really wants to do are two completely different things."

"I would like to take a twenty-minute break," the Professor said suddenly.

_'Finally,'_ Max exclaimed as Rogue opened her eyes._ 'Perhaps _now_ you can feed something besides Charles' curiosity?' _he asked.

"I need more time to contemplate the implications of this conversation," the Professor said as Rogue's attention focused back on the on their conversation.

"What implications?" Ororo asked.

"Yeah, Prof," Rogue glanced at him. "The whole point of this conversation is to get you and everyone else informed. I've been living through this stuff for months, now. So, of course it's all apparent to m-" she started to say.

"Apparent, yes, but it not because of the time that has passed. I hadn't told anyone of my discovery of the cameras. Yet as soon as I said you shouldn't go outside you _instinctively_ knew that Magneto had set them up; who he sent, where, and why," the Professor said.

"Prof, it wasn't instinctive. I had ta think about it for a few seconds before I realized all that," Rogue said.

"Yes, but in mere seconds you deduced all of those_ correct _conclusions. During your training with the fragment did Magneto ever bring up the topic of deductive reasoning?" he asked.

"Yeah, deductive, inductive; the differences between the two. He spend, like, two hours lecturing me on the theories of logic," she answered.

"I see," the Professor said with a nod.

"I don't," Logan exclaimed. "Would either of you two _mind_ explaining what training you're talking about?" Logan asked; she could tell that he was trying to keep control over himself; but he was clearly annoyed with the situation.

"Eric explained some of it to ya all yesterday," Rogue said.

"That Rogue began to train under the fragment of Magneto in her mind after the incident with the rebirth machine in the Sahara," the Professor stated.

"And that's the reason he started looking into you and your past," Logan said bitterly. "I knew I shouldn't have taken you with me," he said under his breath.

"I was not letting Kurt go without me and it would've been pointless ta go without him," Rogue said.

"That's right," the Professor exclaimed as he made eye contact with Rogue. "With the capabilities of your memory you could have told us _exactly_ where the base was. You did not need to accompany them... Rogue, why did you lie?" he asked.

"Hey, maybe Rogue couldn't do all that then-" Kitty started to protest.

"Thanks, Kitty, but Prof's right. I lied," Rogue said.

"Kid, why's you do that? You knew how dangerous it would be," Logan said.

"Exactly," Rogue exclaimed. "I wasn't about to let my little brother run off into danger. If there was even the smallest chance that ya all might have run into Magneto I couldn't have let him go without me. If something had happened to Kurt because of information _I_ had given you; I would _never_ forgive myself," she finished.

"Thanks Rogue, but I can take care of myself," Kurt said.

"Not against Magneto, you can't," Rogue said.

"He has made that fact quite clear," the Professor said gravely. "Rogue, I thought we had finally covered everything there was to tell about that day the last time we spoke of this. Now, I know that was not the case. Is there anything else we know?" he asked. Rogue took a deep breath.

"Hmm- could you give me a second?" she said.

"Take your time," the Professor said. Rogue leaned her head back against the chair's headrest again; closing her eyes.

_'Fuck, I don't even know if anything that happened at the base is reverent anymore. We didn't destroy the rebirth machine- Right, Max?' _she asked.

_'Correct,'_ he said. Rogue let out a sigh. _'But Charles does not know that. The question is will you tell him what you can of that day or not?" _

_'I may not be able to tell them everything but at least I can apologize for that lie I told,'_ Rogue thought.

_'You already did,' _he pointed out.

_'No, the other one,' _she thought remorsefully.

_'Anna, you haven't done anything wrong,' _Max exclaimed. _'This a supposed to be a _school_. Not a training facility for future _intelligence agents_. It is not your job to supply Charles with information. It is his job to teach and protect you; both occupations he has thus-far failed at miserably,'_ Max said.

_'Yeah, I know. I just,'_ she started to think.

_'Just what, Anna?'_ he asked.

_'Just I feel bad about it. I hate lying to them. And I don't care that I'm good at it,'_ she thought quickly in anticipation of his next statement.

_'Then tell him; if that's what you would like to do. It is your choice to, my girl,' _Max said.

"There are hm- two things I should tell you," Rogue said out loud.

"The first?" the Professor asked.

"When we were in the base, Eric didn't have his helmet on. This was after Logan had destroyed the rebirth machine and Eric was really pissed about that. And when he gets angry his control over himself flies out the window and he's capable of _anything_... So, I talked to him," she told him.

"What did you say to him; your exact words please?" the Professor asked. Rogue let out a sigh as she pulled up the memory.

"I thought; Magneto? Hello? Please, I know that we shouldn't of come here. I didn't mean to actually find you," she relayed. There was a gasp from Kitty. "That's the second thing. I'll explain that in a minute. I thought; I'm sorry about operation rebirth, it shouldn't been destroyed. That's when Logan cut that metal thing's head off and I fell to the ground," she said. She quickly paused the memory and skipped ahead.

"When I opened my eyesI saw Eric staring down at me. I- ah," she started to say. Her voice failing her for a moment at the look Magneto was giving her. "... I thought; we're at your mercy... please let us go... At-ah-... At first I wasn't sure he had heard me at all. It wasn't until I woke up later that I was sure. Eric had all three of us pinned to the ground; there- there were metal spears at our necks," she said gasping; she could see it in front of her.

"And ah- ...he said; it seems I have you at my mercy..." Rogue quoted in unison with her memory; his voice ringing in her mind. "Just the- just the way he was looking at me when he said it," she said panicked as she felt a shutter run down her back as she stared up into Max's eyes.

* * *

Charles Xavier watched in horror as Rogue lost control over herself; she was tremblingly; hyperventilating.

"Rogue," Kitty exclaimed as she jumped to her feet and put her hand on her back.

"Rogue, leave that memory," the Professor ordered strongly as he placed his hand on her arm. "Rogue, can you hear me?" he shouted.

"Charles, should we take her to the infirmary?" Hank asked

"Give her a moment," Charles said. "This has happene-," he started to say.

_'Anna, pause that memory now,'_ the fragment of Magneto said strongly into Rogue's mind; and unknowingly into Charles' as well.

Charles was surprised when Rogue seemed to calm down almost instantly.

_'Breath, Anna,'_ Magneto said as Rogue struggled to catch her breath. _'Inhale... Exhale,'_ Magneto coached; Charles watched as she did as he instructed._ 'Again,' _he ordered '_That was months ago,' _the fragment reminded Rogue as Charles watched her continue to breath. _'It did not happen today. You are home. At the Xavier institute surrounded by people who care about you,' _he said as Charles picked up a water bottle from the table and took the top off of it.

"Rogue, here," Charles said he brushed the water bottle up against her hand. Rogue grabbed it from him and took a large gulp.

"Is she going to be okay?" Jean asked.

"She needs a few moments to recover," Charles said.

_'Keep breathing, Anna, you're doing well,'_ Magneto said.

"So, what was that? another flashback?" Wolverine asked.

"Yes," Charles answered. "I did not know how utterly terrified she was. If I had I never would have asked her to relive it," he said.

"He only_ looked_ at me," Rogue exclaimed as she tossed the empty water bottle onto the table. "I can handle that. I know I can. I handled it better then than I did right now," Rogue ranted. "God, I fucking hate when reliving takes this much outta me," she said annoyed before sighing.

_'Anna, you need rest. Clearly, my girl, you are at your breaking point,' _Max said.

"Breaking point?" Rogue repeated in disbelief. "No," she whispered barely audible.

"What is at it's breaking point?" Mr. McCoy asked.

"Nothing," the Professor said strongly. "Rogue, Magneto is _wrong_, please do not listen to him. You are _overwhelmed," _he said panicked as Rogue made eye contact with him.

"Prof, _relax_, I know that. That was scary as hell but it was _momentary _fear. I'm used to it. I just usually don't have an audience," Rogue explained. "Sorry, if I scared anyone," Rogue said as she glanced around the room.

"It's alright, Rogue," Ororo said.

_'Anna, how long do you plan to ignore that dizziness. It's not healthy to neglect yourself, Anna. Wouldn't you agree, Charles?" _Magneto asked.

"Huh?" Rogue asked as she glanced up at the Professor; an eye brow raised. "Prof, are ya reading my mind?" she asked.

"Of course not," he answered at once. The fragment let out a short laugh.

_'And I though gray shades of morality were my specialty,' _Magneto said. Rogue let out a sigh.

"Are you reading the _fragment's_ mind?" she asked next.

"...Yes," the Professor said delicately. "Please understand-" he started to say.

"You don't have ta explain. I get it and I don't blame ya. But he's in my mind. So, reading his mind _is_ reading mine," Rogue said. "Please, don't do it anymore?" she asked.

"Because of my suspicion, I'm afraid, I cannot promise that," he told her. Rogue sighed.

"I really don't feel like talking anymore," Rogue said dryly before she stood up. Charles' eyes widened as he watched her stumbled forward; her hands gripping the side of the table.

"Rogue, are you okay?" Kitty asked concerned her hand moving to Rogue's back.

"Yeah, I'm-" Rogue started to say as he heard her take a deep breath, "I'm just really light headed... I'll be okay; just got up too fast," she explained.

_'Do I need to state the obvious, _again_?'_ Magneto asked.

"No," Rogue muttered under her breath.

_'What you need, now, Anna, is to go eat something healthy. _Not sugar_,'_ Magneto said strongly. _'Something that will not cause your body to crash again in a mere few hours. Meat of some kind would be preferable.'_

"I'll be okay after I eat," Rogue said as she ran a hand through her hair; taking another deep breath.

_'And sleep. You need more rest after you've eaten and then once you wake you need to eat _again_. Or else your body will not recover from the trauma you have had to endure.'_ Magneto.

"Kurt, could you teleport me to the kitchen, please? I ah- I really need to go eat something," Rogue asked. "And then I need some more sleep."

"Rogue," Charles stated to protest say as Kurt stood up.

"Look, I get that you don't approve of our relationship. Half the time_, I _don't approve of it. But when he's right; he's fucking right. So, I'm gonna go take care of myself now," Rogue said as Kurt took hold of her arm. "Kurt?" she asked. Charles let out a sigh as he watched Kurt teleport them; Rogue, Kurt, and Kitty out of the room.

* * *

And that's it for today! I'm running late for work so I'll respond to reviews from last chapter and any I get for this chapter later tonight!

Thanks for reading!


	41. Chapter 40

I know I told a few people that this was going to be a doubled sized chapter (and by double sized I meant I was going to post chapter 40 and 41 together) but I spent a week writing the first part and it was beta-ed by the awesome BasiaM82- !

Again, thank you so much! Your input has been amazing!

The reason I wanted to post them both together was to finally have the numbers match up but whatever :) Instead of waiting two more weeks to write chapter 41 I'm just posting this and I'll go write it and post it in about two weeks. :)

* * *

Please enjoy!

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Forty

Only a moment ago Rogue, Shadowcat, and Nightcrawler had teleported out of the room

Charles sat dumbfounded, by Rogue's actions, in front of those still left in sub-level seven. Charles had seen many things in his life; but never had he been so repeatedly assaulted by new found information. Rogue and the fragment had spoken with such speed and confidence; Charles had struggled to keep up with the conversation. His head was still reeling.

_'The way Rogue calmed down -__the transformation was drastic__.__ One moment she was trembling__, __then after one order from the fragment__,__ her fears dissipated almost instantly,' _he thought to himself, shocked._ 'The way Rogue followed the his orders; would she do the same with Magneto? How long has the fragment had this effect on her? And my god, does Magneto know about it?'_ he fearfully wondered.

"Professor?" Jean asked. Charles glanced up at her.

"I apologize, everyone. I know that I promised you all answers but I still don't have most of them myself. I need more time to fully contemplate all of the implications from our conversation before I can offer explanations of this situation with any degree of confidence. Perhaps it's best if we pick this up tomorrow morning," Charles stated.

"No," Wolverine asserted with his arms crossed over his chest.

"Logan!" Ororo exclaimed.

"What?" he asked annoyed. "You and Rogue say you're going to talk to _us_, but you two spend the whole time talking to each other and _Magneto?_" he asked in disbelief.

"Yes, Rogue, converses with the fragment of Magneto in her mind constantly," Charles said.

"And you do not approve?" Beast probed.

"No, I do not. You are all aware now that Magneto has tried to seduce Rogue?" Charles asked.

"Yeah," Cyclops answered as Wolverine growled slightly under his breath and Jean and Storm nodded.

"It's disturbing to say the least," Beast said.

"In the past, the fragment has expressed a similar interest in Rogue and she, unfortunately, returns these feelings for both the Magneto that resides in her mind and his live counterpart. My guess is that her feelings are a result of the influence the fragment has had on her these past few months," he said. "And I ha-…" he paused for a moment noticing the growing confusion in the others' expressions. "Perhaps I should just start at the beginning."

"Please," Beast said. "And after we are all informed maybe we can contemplate this situation together." he reasoned.

"Very well." Charles nodded. "To my knowledge this whole situation started December 24th of last year when Scott and Rogue saved the Angel from being abducted by Magneto..."

Charles went on to explain the first few weeks of Rogue's experiences with the fragment. How Magneto had silenced the screaming voices of all the other fragments and offered to teach Rogue how to gain control over her abilities. He had gone over once more the events that took place regarding the rebirth machine.

"And so after the incident with the rebirth machine I finally learned of the affects the fragments and their past traumas truly have on Rogue," Charles concluded the story as Kurt and Kitty teleported into the room.

"Is Rogue okay?" Wolverine asked.

"Yeah, she going back to sleep," Shadowcat answered as she and Nightcrawler returned to their seats from earlier.

"So, what did we miss?" Nightcrawler asked.

"Rogue had no control over her powers until _Magneto_ started helping her with them," Wolverine said bitterly. "Kid, was living here for half a year-" he started to say.

"And she never told me about the nightmares," Charles interjected. "Even when I began aware of her nightmare regarding Kurt's past, she never said anything about being plagued by others and certainly never asked for help," he continued, frustration showing through his cracking composure. "Knowing what we do now about the pain she had to endure-"

"She has truly seen my parents' death?" Storm inquired, voice softened by concern.

"I do not know how many times," Charles confirmed sadly.

"I can't believe she witnessed my parents' deaths when even I do not remember it," Storm marveled.

"While being trapped in that building is likely the root of your claustrophobia, it is probable that you repressed the memory of the actual events that resulted in the death of your parents," Charles explained.

"I need to speak to her when she wakes," Storm started to say. "She told me that she has to suppress some of the emotions that accompany some of her more upsetting memories, but I never imagined that my memories could be the cause of any part of her pain," she said horrified.

"Ororo, when did Rogue say that?" Charles asked.

"It was last Tuesday. I found Rogue in the elevator, she was crying - poor child," she shook her head before going on. "We talked but she wasn't willing to tell me why she was upset."

"Do you remember the time?" Charles questioned.

"It was just before school."

"I remember that," Nightcrawler piped up. "She was acting weird: talking to herself in the bathroom."

"Well, that's not new." Shadowcat threw in. "She was probably, like, talking to one of the fragments."

"Kurt, do you remember what she was saying?" Charles continued to probe.

"Huh? Hmm, not really, I -ah. It was a few days ago," Nightcralwer responded a little sheepishly.

"It's alright, Kurt. May I look at the memory in your mind?" the Professor requested.

"Chuck, is it that important?" Wolverine asked.

"I don't know yet, but I would like the chance to find out," he answered.

"Hm, yeah, I guess," Nightcrawler shrugged.

"Thank you," the Professor said as he moved next to Nightcrawler. "Try to concentrate on that moment if you can," Charles said as he pulled into his memory.

"This** is where I belong," Rogu****e insisted.**

"You _**belong**_** in the car," Kurt said. After a moment there was laughter from the bathroom. "We're going to be late for school," he said. Kurt let out a sigh as he listened to Rogue continue to laugh. **_**'How long is she going to laug**__**h?**__**It **__**wasn't even funny,'**_** he thought slightly annoyed. He opened his mouth to yell again but was interrupted by the door opening. **

**"Sorry, Kurt," Rogue said with a smile as she walked out of the bathroom.**

**"Did you at least find out what you were looking for?" he asked with a sigh.**

"My _**backbone**_**, yeah I found it," she said with a smile.**

"**Huh?" he asked confused**.

**"Nothing, don't worry about it," she laughed before she glanced up at Ororo. "Thanks, Ororo," she said as she took Kurt's hand. **

**"You're welcome. I hope you both have a good day at school," she said.**

**"Thanks," both he and Rogue said.**

Charles pulled out of the memory and Nightcrawler's mind.

"Was that helpful?"

"I'm not sure, Hank. I need to speak with Rogue about it once she is willing to open up again," Charles said. "Where were we?"

"Rogue hadn't been willing to speak with you about the nightmares," Beast recalled. "But she was willing to with Magneto?"

"Because Magneto was in her mind I do not think she had to. He simply knew," Charles rationalized.

"It must have been more comfortable for Rogue to be able to work towards fixing her problems without having to explain them to anyone," Jean said. "I know it helped me a lot when I first came to the institute and you just knew what was wrong," she turned to Charles.

"Yes, I would imagine so," Charles agreed as he concealed his surprise over the comparison. "Once I finally began to understand the pain the nightmares caused Rogue it was too late: Magneto had already filled that void and he had become the teacher that she needed. My input only slowed her progress," he said. "Although, that did not stop me from trying to stay involved..."

And so Charles continued to explain the events as far as he was aware of them. How he had found out that the fragment and Rogue were somehow engaging in a sexual relationship; he had asked Rogue to promise not to do anything sexual with the fragment and how, to his knowledge, until the fragment's living counterpart had started his pursuit of Rogue she had kept that promise.

_'All four days,'_ Charles had thought to himself. _'The time-line of events alone adds weight to my suspensions.' _

Charles explained his knowledge of Rogue's conversation with Magneto at the cafe. Cyclops, Shawdowcat, and Nightcrawler had filled everyone in on what they knew about the second conversation Rogue and Magneto had the next day; both after school and the phone call later that night.

Kitty again had jumped into the conversation to tell what had happen the when they had disappeared; saving Pietro.

And finally Charles had fully explained his suspension about the fragment; how he believed that Magneto might have astro-projected into Rogue's mind, posing as the fragment.

"And that is the situation as far as I have been informed," Charles finished as he stared at the shocked faces around him.

"Chuck, I get what you think about the fragment and Magneto being the same person, but the kid's got trouble _trusting_ people enough as it is. You really want to go down that road?" Wolverine asked.

"I do not see another alternative," he said sadly.

"You could just let her be," Jean said delicately.

"And let Rogue tell us what we need to know in her own time," Storm added. "Charles, you said that you trusted her with your life," she pointed out.

"Yes, I do, but I do not trust Magneto with _hers_," Charles said. "And we all know what he wants from her."

"Even though we have no idea how it would be possible for the fragment to-" Beast started to say.

"We already said we weren't gonna talk about that," Wolverine yelled. "Rogue, doesn't want us to know how. _I_ don't want to know how."

"And so we won't," Charles said quickly. Charles looked around at the others and said, "If all of you agree that I should not search though the fragment's mind for answers then I'm afraid that we are at a standstill."

"Personally, I believe that you should keep reading the fragment's thoughts. If nothing else it will keep the fragment from-," Beast said before Wolverine began to growl again, "behaving inappropriately," he finished.

"I disagree. Rogue, has already promised not to do anything sexual with the fragment. I believe we should trust her to keep her word," Storm countered.

"Me too," Shadowcat said.

"And me," Nightcrawler said. Charles glanced around the room. It seemed that only Beast was of the same mind as him.

"Then we wait," Beast said, conceding to the majority.

"I suppose so," Charles uttered, not sure yet if he was willing to leave it at that. For three weeks he had been waiting idly by as Magneto had somehow abused his ward right under his roof. He didn't think he could stand to sit back and allow that type of abuse to continue unabated.

"I'm going for a ride," Wolverine said as he stood. "Half-pint, you mind letting me know when she wakes up?" he asked.

"Yeah, totally," Shadowcat said with small smile.

"Thanks," he muttered before he walked out of the room.

"Meet's over then?" Nightcrawler asked.

"For now, yes," Charles answered.

* * *

Rogue placed the collection of cold-cuts back in their drawer within the refrigerator. She had just finished making her second sandwich. The first she had eaten the day before. After its consumption she had passed out for another twenty hours of sleep. Now, finally, the dizziness was gone and she was no longer fighting just to keep her eyes open.

Kitty, Kurt and Logan had all offered to join her for her trip to the kitchen but Rogue had declined. She really did just want to be alone for a few minutes without having to deal with any of her family's questions or concerns.

Rogue let out a sigh when she realized that the Professor had entered the room.

_'It was nice while it lasted,'_ Rogue thought annoyed.

"It's good to see you're awake," he said as she slammed the refrigerator door closed.

"Thanks," she muttered as she headed back to her plate on the counter. Since she had found out that the Professor was reading the fragment's mind, she had been, in her mind, understandably annoyed. _'Now, I can't even talk about what's going on with you, Max,' _she thought, irritated, as she grabbed her plate and made her way to the table.

_'I can be vague,' _Max offered as she sat down, placing the plate in front of her.

_'You shouldn't have ta be,' _she thought as she took her first bite. _'It's bad enough I gotta watch every word I say; now I have ta watch what I think too,'_ annoyance bubbled up through her thoughts.

_'I doubt Charles would read your thoughts without permission,'_ he said.

"You feel like responding to that?" Rogue asked dryly, staring out over his shoulder. She refused to look him in the eye.

"... Magneto is correct. I will not read _your_ mind," the Professor said.

"Ya just did... twice," she said before taking another bite.

"There is a _distinction_ there, Rogue-" he started to say.

"That I don't approve of!" Rogue exclaimed. "Yesterday morning you said you were gonna respect my privacy. Is this what you call _respect_?" she asked incredulously.

"Rogue, please understand-" he started to say.

"I do understand why you're doing this. I_ also_ understand why Magneto keeps kidnapping and stalking me. Just because I _understand_ doesn't mean I have ta like what you're doing," she said.

"You're comparing me to him?" the Professor asked in disbelief.

"Yes," she said. "You're_ both_ disregarding my privacy because you feel that's what you need ta do ta protect me and you're both _wrong_. You think you're protecting me from him and his dangerous sexual advances," she said mockingly. The Professor's eyes narrowed at that comment. "And he thinks that by recruiting me into his group that he's protecting me from any threats to our kind. At least that's what you tell yourselves," she said bitterly.

"The truth is, both you and he have the same goals: controlling information," she said as the Professor's eyes widened. "Magneto wants to recruit me to keep me from telling you or anyone else what I have access to from his mind. And you're worried about what Eric might've learned in case he's somehow overlapped with the fragment. I'm the one struck in the middle of your fight."

"My life turned upside down every few days because both of your secrets are so fucking important. I am so tired of explaining shit ta both of you," she exclaimed. She paused for a moment, taking a deep breath._ "_I- I'm sorry. I- I didn't really mean that. I know you care about me. I know for you it's not just about information," she said.

"For Magneto, it is?" he asked.

"He cares about me too," she said.

"But not strongly enough to be unwilling to threaten you," he stated.

"Yeah," she said dryly. _'Which is bullshit; people who love ya shouldn't be willing to do things th-_,' she thought to herself.

_'An-'_ the fragment started to say; she could hear the concern and sincerity in his voice.

_'Max, I know ya wanna say something about that-'_

_'I would like to do more than state; but given the company,'_ Max said.

"Rogue?" the Professor asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Prof, you don't even know what we're talking about," she said with narrowed eyes.

"I would like to," he said.

"But I don't," she said strongly. "I'm entitled to having conversations that ya don't know every detail of. With Magneto or whoever the fuck else I decide I wanna talk to," she said annoyed before she dropped her half eaten sandwich "I ain't hungry anymore," she muttered with a sigh.

_'Ann-' _Max started to protest.

_'I'm gonna eat again in less than two hours. I ain't gonna collapse from exhaustion between now and then,'_ she told him while rolling her eyes.

_'You are still planning to meet your father?'_ Max asked. She saw the Professor's eyes light up in surprise.

"Yes, I am," she answered both of them bitterly aloud as she stood up. She felt another surge of anger towards the Professor's actions. For her it was the first few days of her captivity with Magneto all over again; having to be accountable for every thought with no real privacy. She thought she was finally done with that.

"Rogue, are you certain that is the wisest course of action?" the Professor asked as she marched over to the trash can.

"Until a few days ago I didn't think that Victor gave a shit," she said as she tossed the rest of her sandwich into it. "He thought the same about me. If I don't show up he's gonna think I was just messing with him. I _won't _cancel on him," she said as she headed to the dishwasher.

"I'm certain he would understand," the Professor started to say.

"He doesn't know me well enough_ to_ understand," she said as she placed the plate in the dishwasher.

"That may be so, but what about the danger of leaving the institute?" he asked.

"Way ahead of you, Professor," she said as she closed the dishwasher. "I talked to Kurt; he's letting me borrow his image inducer," she told him as she held up her wrist to show him the watch around it. "I already programed it to make me look like Logan," she said as she pressed it and Logan's shape, dressed in his new uniform, disguised her. She heard him gasp.

"Rogue, how did you-" the Professor started to ask surprised.

"I got both Magneto and Mr. McCoy up here," she said she put her fingers on her temple. "How do you think I did it?" she asked annoyed. "I'm gonna borrow Logan's new bike and go meet Victor. I talked to Logan too. He said he won't leave the institute until I get back. It ain't gonna look remotely outta place ta those cameras and whoever's watching them to see Logan take off on his own. I got it covered, Prof. I'll be fine," she finished.

"And what if Magneto does, somehow, find you?" the Professor asked. "Magneto is Sabertooth's _employer_; what if he has already informed Magneto that he plans to meet you for dinner?" he asked. Rogue's eyes widened with fear. "What if he doesn't allow Sabertooth to leave his base and comes to meet you in his place?" he asked as Rogue took a deep breath.

"...Then I talk Magneto into trying french fries," Rogue said with a smirk.

_'That, Anna, is _never_ going to occur,'_ Max assured her; lightheartedly.

_'I don't know, Max, I can be very _persuasive_ when I wanna be,'_ she thought as she turned the image inductor off.

_'You most certainly can be, my girl,' _Max laughed.

"Rogue, this is no laughing matter," the Professor said firmly. She turned to face him.

"Would you prefer I start crying again? 'Cause I sure as hell wouldn't. I am sick and fucking tried of crying and of being miserable and terrified. I know that I should be scared of mine and Eric's next conversation 'cause I don't know what the fuck's gonna happen. _Anything_ could fucking happen. But, after everything I've lived through already I refuse to be afraid to step outside. So, I'm going... with or without your approval," she told him.

"Rogue, could you please sit for a moment? There is something I must ask you," he said as he gestured towards the chairs.

"Prof…" she started to protest.

"Please, it's not what you think," he told her. "You have had your chance to have your say. I do not agree with you completely but I listened regardless. Would you please pay me that same respect?" he asked. Rogue let out a sigh as she sat down again. "The other day when we were being held captive by Magneto he began to demand things of you in exchange for our safety. If given the chance-"

"He's do it again in fucking heartbeat," she said dryly.

"As I thought," he nodded. "I want you to promise me something. If we are in that situation again I need you promise me you will not make any deals with Magneto, at least not alone," he stressed. Rogue looked away from him, her eyes growing distant. She was willing herself not to think anything that would give the truth away.

"...But what if he's asking for something I wanna give him?" she asked softly.

"_Especially_, then," he stressed. "Rogue, please promise me you will not have sex with him to protect us," he asked. Her eyes widened as she recalled the night she had made the deal with she had had sex with Max that night but it wasn't because of their deal.

'Right?' she asked herself. _'No,'_ she thought quickly. _'I- I wanted to,' _she thought_. _"...Prof, I- I wouldn't," she stuttered.

"I'm glad to hear that," he said relieved._"_In a few years when you are older and it is no longer illegal; if you still wish to pursue a relationship with Magneto-"

"You'd approve?" she asked in disbelief.

"Maybe, not entirely but, at least, it will no longer be abuse," he said.

"It's not abuse _now,_" she insisted.

"So, we both still disagree," he said.

"Ya know, ya can't ban me from having sex, right Prof?" she asked.

"Yes, of course I know that," he sighed. "The other day, may I assume, that you called for us because you did not wish to go with Magneto?" he asked.

"Yeah."

"And if Magneto comes for you again will you be willing to go with him?"

"...No," she answered; knowing that was the correct answer to tell him; to support the facade. "Not without being threatened," she added; she wasn't sure if she was lying or not.

""Then can we agree that if Magneto does manage to get you alone you will be his prisoner?" he asked. Rogue let out a sigh. She was his prisoner now.

"... Yeah, Prof, we can agree on that; I'd be his captive," she said sadly

"When it comes to sexual matters, most states agree that _eighteen_ is the age of consent. And consent is most certainly the topic we are discussing. My question is; how are you supposed to feel as though you have the power to say no to him when he has refused you the right to leave a certain room, let alone his company? How can you possibly be free to give consent in that situation when you yourself are not free?" he asked.

"Because, it was dif-" she started to say before stopping herself. The Professor had no idea how many times she had been in that situation already. She had already come up with her own answer. _'But how the hell do I explain that to him without-'_ she started to think. "Prof, I ah- ...I need a minute," she said softy.

"I know that Magneto has already put you in that position while he was holding you prisoner in the cafe. Take your time to sort through your feelings and answer me when you're ready," he said.

"Thanks," she said with a small smile as she sat back against her seat. With a sigh she closed her eyes. _'I need you to be vague,_' she told him.

_'Understood,'_ Max said.

_'It's different. You would never rape me, I know that,' _she thought.

_'Charles' argument is that once you are in that situation you no longer have consent over anything,'_ he reworded.

_'But, I do,'_ she insisted. _'I can say no, I have said no. I-'_ she thought before stopping herself. "Prof, when I was with him in the café; yeah he was trying to have sex with me, but when I said no he stopped," she said.

"Until he tried again," he pointed out.

"And, I said no, _again,_" she said.

"Rogue, why are you defending him?" he asked confused. Rogue blinked: surprised at the question.

"I'm not; I'm defending me." she insisted.

"But you are. Rogue, Magneto should respect you enough not to wish to take you captive. My point is that you should never _be_ in that situation. Whether or not you have consent, in a normal _healthy_, relationship, should never be in question. That is my issue with his intentions. It's not what he stated; I know you're intelligent. After witnessing the cognitive abilities you've displayed over the past few days, how could I feel any other way?" he asked.

"Thanks," she smiled.

"Of course," he said returning it for a moment. "Now, about that promise I asked you to make a few minutes ago," he said with a raised eyebrow.

_"Damn it,'_ she thought to herself. _'I was hoping he'd drop it.'_

"Rogue?" he asked. She sighed.

"But what if I'm the only one he's willing to negotiate with?" she asked.

"That doesn't matter. Magneto should not ask that of you," he said.

"He doesn't give a shit that you're supposed to be in charge. He's gonna negotiate with whoever the fuck he wants to," she said.

"Rogue I will disband the X-Men before I will allow him to use our safety to take advantage if you," he said strongly.

"What?" she asked as her eyes widened in shock. "...Ya- you can't mean that," she said disbelief.

"I most certainly do," he said with conviction.

"It's your life's work," she exclaimed.

"I do not necessarily need to have the X-Men active to do my work. I can continue to help young mutants gain control over their abilities regardless," he said.

"Prof, I- I appreciate the thought but ya- you shouldn't disband the X-Men. If ya do Eric's not gonna magically stop pursuing me," she said. The Professor looked surprised.

"I thought you said this was about information. If there are no X-Men to inform than he should be willing to leave you alone. Neither of us would be a threat to him," he said.

_'Fuck,'_ she thought. "...Okay, maybe it's about more than that," she admitted reluctantly. "It won't stop him," she said.

"Then what will?" he asked.

"Nothing," she exclaimed. "It's doesn't matter where I go, or what I do. He's gonna keep following me," she said annoyed.

"Why? " the Professor asked.

"You know why; he wants a partner. Someone to share his life with."

"Actually, I did not know that," he said slowly. "...He wants a wife?" he asked in diebelief.

"Pretty much, yeah," she said slowly.

"But why must it be you, Rogue?" he asked confused. "What does he want from you that he can't find in someone else closer to his own age? Why has he become so fixated on you?"

She just stared at him and fought the urge to tell him.

"I don't- I don't know why it just has to be me. I can't explain it," she lied. She wanted to get out of there. She hated lying and anything she would have to say next would be another lie.

"Prof, it's already four. I- ah I need to go take a shower and get ready to meet Victor. That's what I gotta do... Prof, I," she said as she looked up at him. "Please don't disband the X-Men. It won't help anything," she said.

"What will?" he asked.

"I don't know yet," she said. "Maybe... Maybe, I should just go to him," she said softly.

"Rogue," the Professor exclaimed as he moved closer to her. "That is not the answer," he said strongly.

"This is where you belong," he said strongly.

"I know that," she muttered; she knew instantly why he had chosen those words. They sat in silence for a moment. She had a feeling he was waiting for her to comment on his words. _'I don't wanna lie,'_ she thought sadly.

"...Rogue, Kurt allowed me to-"

"I know, he told me," she said with a sigh.

"That was nearly a week before Magneto restated his interests in you... as far as I know," he added. Rogue felt a pit in her stomach; why had she broken down in front of so many witnesses?

_'How the hell I am supposed to explain this?'_ she asked herself as she fought to keep her facial expression neutral. She wondered how long she had before she be forved to call Magneto to reafirm the fascade. The fragment of Magneto chuckled darkly._ 'Huh?' _

_'Charles, really? As far as you know?' _Max asked with a laugh._ 'Use your comment sense, _Professor_,'_ he mockingly._'I have been present in Anna's mind this_ entire_ time. A day had not passed before I reiterated my offer; which as Anna knows she has the freedom to accept it at any time. During that meeting she and I discussed her options; My ideology; her developing ideology,'_ he said.

"And that conversation caused her to break down?" the Professor asked in disbelief.

"It wouldn't be the first time," Rogue stated honestly.

"His words have brought you to tears before?" the Professor asked concerned.

"Yeah," Rogue muttered. "Once or twice," she said.

_'Anna, I have told you that I state what I must-' _Max started to say.

"Yeah, yeah," she said aloud. Normally, she would just think her comments to the fragment; but today they were putting on a show. "I know in the most brutal way possible," she said rolling her eyes.

_'Because you're stubborn,' _Max said.

"And you're an asshole," Rogue finished annoyed.

_'Anna, it was not my aim to cause you that much dismay,' _he said remorsefully._ 'As soon as I realized-'_

"I know ya stopped. Ya always do," she said with a small smile_. _"Just sometimes you push way too fucking hard," she said honestly.

_'So, you keep telling me. I've been trying-'_ Max said.

"I know. I appreciate it," she said. "Ya just suck at being a friend," she told him; Max chuckled in response. "We talked about pretty much everything and yeah the option ta join him comes up a lot. I mean, ya can't deny that ya'all would be safer without me here ta get_ kidnapped_ every other day," she said. Charles sighed.

"Rogue, when a store is robbed whom deserves the blame? The thief for breaking in, or the store for being open at its location of choice?" he asked.

"The thief," she said.

"No one blames the victims in these situations, which is what Magneto has tried to turn you into, but you can not give in to his tactics. Rogue, I cannot tell you how proud I am of the way you fought against him. I know the other day you must have been frightened beyond belief," he said.

"I wasn't - not really," she told him. He looked at her curiously.

"How do you feel when you're with him?" he asked.

"Annoyed, really fucking annoyed. He always shows up when I don't want him there. When he's not around I'm terrified of when he's gonna come for me next. I know so much and he doesn't want his secrets known. But once I'm with him, Prof it's- … He doesn't wanna hurt me. He_ likes_ me. He wants to teach me everything he knows and show me so much that I've never seen."

"I- I know that I should be more pissed off at him; cause he keeps trying to kidnap me and he'll willing to threaten everyone to get his way. I know that a part of me should try ta hate him for everything's he done. But it's hard to stay mad at him when all he wants is to help me... I feel safe with him," she admitted quietly; her eyes on the table.

He didn't respond to her. After a moment she glanced up at him. The faraway look in his eyes told her that he was thinking.

"Prof?" she asked. His eyes refocused on her.

"Rogue, do you feel safe now?" he asked.

"I'm sorry, I don't," she said shaking her head.

"There's nothing to apologize for, Rogue," he said. "I'm sorry I allowed Magneto to gain this much influence over you," he said.

"That ain't your fault," she exclaimed. "I mean- who do you blame when a store gets robbed?" she made eye contact with him. "The _thief _or the manager who assumed their security system was up to date?" she asked with a small smile.

"The thief," he smiled in return. "One always faults the thief who committed the crime," he said.

"Rogue, can you promise me one thing?" he asked.

"It's depends on what ya're asking," she told him.

"That fair enough," he said with a smile. "If you wish to leave the institute, for any reason, whether we find your relatives-"

"Huh?" she asked; taken back. "Find my-" she started to ask. "I don't even know if Owen or Carrie are still alive," she said sadly.

"Do you wish to find out?" he asked.

"Of course, I do," Rogue exclaimed.

"Then considerate it on my to do list," he said with a smile. Rogue couldn't help but return it; she felt hopeful.

"Thanks," she said.

"You're welcome," he said with a smile. "And as I was saying if you decide that you wish to go live with either of your relatives or even Sabortooth-" he started to say before Rogue let out a soft laugh.

"That ain't gonna fucking happen. Having dinner is one thing, but I don't think I could live with that man again. Prof, I already told you, you're the best guardian I've ever had and I love you like an uncle, I do," she said as she watched his eyes light up with emotion.

"An uncle?" he asked happily.

"Well, _yeah. _I mean, until last Thursday Victor was mostly a shit father I didn't wanna compare you with him," she said. The Professor laughed softly.

"I appreciate that, thank you," he said smiling.

"You're welcome," she said as she watched tears filling in the ducts of his eyes. "Hmm, you okay, Prof?" she asked with a smile.

"I'm fine," he said as he rubbed the corners of his eyes. "I'm fine," he said he placed his hands on his lap." Please continue," he said.

"Just that I-ah I have no intention of leaving. I've considerated it a couple of times; I mean, can ya blame me? How could I not think about it? But I don't wanna. Not really; but I don't wanna be selfish either if staying here means that I'm putting everyone else in danger. But as far as Magneto's concerned; I ain't gonna leave with him, not unless I'm forced to," she said.

"I plan to do everything I can to keep that from happening," he told her.

"I know ya do," she said. "...See," she exclaimed happily. "I told ya, you're a good guardian," she said with a smile; which he returned.

"So you did. I glad to living up to our expectations of me," he said before her gaze left his to look at the clock on the wall.

"Prof, I'm really gotta go get ready now. I'll be late if I don't," she said. He nodded.

"Please be careful," he said.

"I will. I'll see you later tonight," she said.

"And hopefully we can discuss your unwillingness to make a certain promise?" he asked.

"You ain't gonna drop this are ya?" she asked with a sigh.

"I'm afraid not," he said.

"Alright, fine. We'll talk about it. Do ya wanna take the ride with me?" she asked.

"In the elevator?" he asked.

"No, ta McDonald's," she answered. "Logan drives you places all the time. That won't look weird to the cameras either," she said in response to his raised eyebrow.

"...Alright, then," he said after a moment.

"Okay, I'll met ya at the elevator in like an hour?" she asked.

"Alright," he said.

* * *

Charles Xavier watched his ward walk out the room. He took a deep breath.

_'Plurals. She keeps referring to his kidnapping attempts in the plural,'_ he thought to himself. _'That most certainly means something,' _

"Oh, hey, Scott, Jean," he heard Rogue say from down the hall.

"Hey, Rogue," Scott said.

"How are feeling?" Jean asked.

"Much better," Rogue told her; Charles could hear the smile in her voice.

"Hey, that's great," Scott exclaimed.

"Thanks, but I gotta run. I gotta go get ready," Rogue said.

"Okay, see ya later," he said.

"See ya," she said.

After a moment Scott and Jean walked into the kitchen.

"Scott, Jean just who I was hoping to see," Charles said with a smile. "I need a favor from the two of you," he said.

"Yes, Professor?" Jean asked.

"Would the two of you, please, go over the order of events from the three weeks I wasn't here," Charles asked.

"Sure," Jean said.

* * *

Thats it for this chapter! Thank you all for reading! Please review! I love hearing for you all and getting feedback! :)


	42. Chapter 41

FYI: go reread chapter 16 real quick if your fuzzy on past events! ^.^

Please enjoy... and then review! :)

* * *

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Forty One

"You're certain?" Charles Xavier asked alarmed as he sat in front of Scott and Jean; whom were seated at the kitchen table.

"Yes, Rogue definitely absorbed Toad at the mall," Jean answered. "I saw her jump down from the second floor. She couldn't have done that without his powers," she added. The was no doubt in Charles' mind that the first thing Rogue would have done was search through Toad's memory for answers.

_'Perhaps she didn't think to- no. Every time Rogue has a question, until yesterday, she has gone into her mind and found that answer if she is able. With Toad's mind in hers she would have been more than able to learn that Mystique was back in charge of the brotherhood. And if Rogue was aware of that, then why didn't she tell anyone?' _he asked.

"Rogue absorbs the brotherhood boys all the time," Scott said; pulling him out of his thoughts.

"I know," Charles said dismissively. "Did anything else out of the ordinary happen that night?" Charles asked.

"Hm, let me think," Jean said.

"Jean, I apologize but I do not have much time, right now. May I look at the memory myself?" he asked.

"Alright, Professor," Jean said as she closed her eyes.

"Thank you," Charles muttered as he placed his figures on her temple and pulled into her mind.

**Jean watched Scott with a sigh as she got into the front seat of the X-Van. Wordlessly, she watched Scott start the car and start to drive. **

**_'He's really taking this hard,'_ she thought to herself before she turned back to glance out of the front window. She let out a gasp as she felt the van come to an abrupt stop; Scott quickly pulling the car over to the side of the road. **

**"Why'd we stop?" she heard Rogue ask from behind her.**

**"Something's wrong with the van," Kitty answered.**

**"Scott, what is it?" Jean asked. Scott turned the keys in the ignition.**

**"I don't know," Scott said. "It won't start up again," he said with anger as he hit his fist into the steering wheel.**

**"Scott, calm down," Jean said softy; she had never seen him like this before.**

**"At least we're, like, not in the middle of the street," Kitty offered. Jean gave Kitty a reassuring smile as she pulled out her communicator.**

**"Yeah, Scott. Good thing you pulled over," Kurt said. Scott wordlessly got out of the car, slamming the door behind him. They all watched him stand in front the van and lift the hood up.**

**_'He needs to calm down,'_ Jean thought to herself as she brought the communicator closer to her mouth. "Professor?" she asked into the communicator.**

**"Man, this sucks," she heard Evan exclaim. **

**"It's not that bad... If Scott can fix the blackbird, he can fix a van, right?" Kurt asked.**

**"Storm?" Jean asked. "The van broke down on the way- … Hello?" she asked.**

**"Jean, what's wrong?" Rogue asked.**

**"I don't know. No one's answering," Jean said as she fussed with the communicator. "There must be something wrong with it. Does anyone else have their's?" she asked as she turned to face them. She heard Rogue let out a sigh.**

**"I forgot mine at the institute," Rogue said.**

**"I don't have mine either," Kurt said. "I know I brought it with me."**

**"Mine's gone too. I, like, must have dropped out of my pocket during the fight," Kitty said.**

**"Maybe when we were in the tree," Kurt said.**

**"Yeah, maybe," Kitty said.**

**"Evan?" Jean asked.**

**"Nope," he said shaking his head.**

**"We're not that far from the institute. Kurt could you teleport back and drive another car here to pick us up?" Jean asked.**

**"Yeah, no problem," he said.**

**"I'll come with you," Kitty said with a smile. Kurt smiled back.**

**"Tell Scott before you go," Jean said. He nodded as he teleported out of the van.**

**"See you later," Kitty said as she opened the door; waving at her. Jean waved back as she watched her get out of the car. **

_'What?' _Charles asked himself as he paused the memory.

**Out of the corner of Jean's peripheral vision he could see Rogue's face. Her eyes were facing the door. She looked terrified. **

_'That's the same expression Rogue had on her face yesterday when she recalled what occurred in the Sahara,' _he thought.

**Charles resumed the memory and studied Rogue's actions.** **He watched her slightly open her mouth as she stared up in fear at the thin air next to her. Charles paused the memory again. **

_'The angle she's looking up- yes, yes- she could easily be looking someone in the eyes. But how would that even be possible? If someone- … if Magneto was in the X-Van why would no else be able to see him? What caliber of telepath is Magnus?' _Charles asked himself in fear.

**Charles resumed the memory and watched as Rogue quickly closed her mouth. Jean's attention turned back to Scott as he got back onto the car. He tried to start the car. Jean let out a sigh in relief as it started up.**

**"Let's go home," Jean said, looking at Scott. Scott started to drive as she turned to look out the window. Charles continued to watch their entire trip home hoping to catch a glimpse of Rogue again. Unfortunately, Jean faced forward the rest of the ride. **

Charles let out a sigh as he exited the memory and Jean's mind.

"Professor, did that help?" Scott asked.

"Yes," he said gravely.

"How?" Scott asked.

_'Prof?'_ Charles heard Rogue project into his mind.

"One moment, Scott," Charles said._ 'Yes, Rogue?'_ he asked.

_'I'm ready ta go when you are,'_ she told him.

* * *

_'I will met you in the elevator. Please wait for me _indoors_,'_ the Professor told Rogue firmly.

_'I'm already in the elevator,' _Rogue rolled her eyes as she glanced at the controls of the lift in front of her._ 'Which floor are ya on?_' she asked.

_'Sub- level three,'_ he said.

_'Still?'_ she asked incredulously as she pressed the button. _'I'll- ah, see ya in a minute, Prof,' _she said as she felt the elevator move_. 'Remember,'_ she started to think after a moment. She adjusted the strap on her back pack to be at the length as the other one as she paused; waiting for to see if the Professor responded. Thankfully, he didn't. _'Remember what we agreed on,'_ Rogue thought to the fragment.

_'Yes, I know. I will not think a single thought unless asked,'_ he said dryly as the lift's doors opened.

"Good," she muttered satisfied as she stepped out of the elevator.

"Scott?" she heard the Professor asked.

_'He's still down here too?'_ Rogue asked herself surprised.

"Is something else going on with Rogue?" Scott asked. "What's with all the secrets?" he asked.

"I will explain later. For now-" the Professor started to say.

"Hey," Rogue said as she entered the room; making her presence known. She leaned up against the door frame. "What's going on?" she asked as she crossed her arms over her chest.

"Ah- nothing," Jean said quickly. Rogue stared at her with a raised eyebrow; she was clearly lying. "I guess you don't want me to know what ya all were just saying about me, huh?" Rogue asked as she looked the Professor in the eyes. He sighed.

"Not at this moment, no," the Professor replied.

"That's fine. I don't need ta know every detail of _every_ conversation somebody has about me. I can respect your right ta _privacy_," she said; driving in her point from before. The Professor sighed again. "Do ya still wanna have that conversation about that promise you've been wanting me ta make?" she asked. She raised an eyebrow as she saw him hesitate. _'He was so fucking eager to have it before,' _she thought confused.

"I need some time to think," the Professor told her. She stared at him bewildered.

_'What the hell were they talking about for an hour that he doesn't-?_' she asked herself. "I'd ask about what. But I gotta feeling that's something else ya don't want me to know," she said; as she studied his face. The Professor looked uneasy._ 'I must be right, then,' _she thought. "So, I won't ask," she said.

"But you should be able to," Scott exclaimed suddenly as he stood up; catching her by surprise. "Professor, this is getting out of hand. I understand keeping secrets from anyone who doesn't live here but from each other?" he asked in disbelief. "Everyone keeps saying that we all trust Rogue, but I don't see how you can when you keep asking us to keep all of these secrets," Scott said. "So what if she absorbed Toad-" Scott said.

"Scott," the Professor exclaimed cutting off his statement.

_'God damn it,'_ Rogue thought in anger as she felt the Professor's eyes on her. She fought to keep her expression neutral.

_'Anna-' _the fragment started to say.

_'I'll handle this,' _she thought irate. It seemed every conversation there was something new she had to cover up; a new lie she was forced to tell. She was getting sick of it.

"Professor, I don't-" Scott started to say again.

"Prof _does_ trust me," Rogue insisted as she walked over to the table and sat down next to Scott.. "Ya do get how he thinks that Magneto's been overlapping the fragment, right?" Rogue asked.

"Yeah, I get that," Scott exclaimed.

"Okay, but apparently ya don't understand the implications that would have on our lives," Rogue said.

"Yes, I do," Scott said strongly.

"Alright, then. List them," Rogue ordered.

"Well, it would mean that Magneto would know everything about your powers," Scott said.

"Be more specific. What exactly about was it about my training with Magneto that would cause both me and Prof to be worried?" she asked.

"Hmm," he started to say.

"_Information_," Rogue said strongly. "Everything I told the fragment in confidences. Everything I learned about myself and the X-Men's past through the use of my powers; our fears, witnesses. What ya gotta understand is that knowledge is power," she said.

"A phrase you learned from Magneto?" the Professor asked curiously.

"And he got it Sir Francis Bacon. I doubt you got anything against him. He's been _dead_ for over three hundred years," she said annoyed before she let out a sigh. She hated having to defend her education. Magneto was right; it didn't matter who she received the information from just that she learned.

"What was my point?" Rogue asked herself.

_'Anna, if you plan to state what I believe you are going to then know, my girl, that you are about a most grievous error,'_ Max warned. She glanced at the Professor looked at her curiously; he had clearly heard the comment.

_'My mistake to make,'_ she told him as she took a deep breath.

_'Nevertheless, you should not do this. Once you state this knowledge out loud. Once you tell Charles you can not take that information back. Are you prepared to deal with the _repercussions_ of your actions? '_ Max asked.

_'Yes, I am,'_ she told him.

_'You're lying to yourself. You know you are. Anna, please, stop this now before you regret it,'_ Max said.

_'No,'_ she thought determined. "Look, just imagine how different things would be if one of us had found out that Mystique was back in charge of the brotherhood or that she was masquerading at the Professor _before_ she revealed it herself?" Rogue asked. She watched the Professor's eye widen in fear. "Magneto understands how powerful information is. Do ya all have any idea how many people he's _blackmailed_ to keep certain secrets?" she asked.

"No, I don't," Jean said.

"It's a lot," Rogue said. "Eric ain't afraid ta use his powers to keep people from messing up his plans."

"Including you," the Professor said.

"Yeah, including me," Rogue admitted sadly. "When Eric was holding ya all as hostages he made me act as a negotiator. Given the situation I did the only thing I thought I could do; I cooperated with him. I don't know if working with him was the right thing ta do. There's a thin line between blackmail and betrayal and I ain't really sure whether I crossed it or not," she said.

"Rogue, you only answered a couple of questions. You didn't betray anyone," Jean said confused.

"Thanks, Jean," Rogue said with a smile. Although that wasn't what she was referring to. Rogue hoped the Professor was able to read between the lines and understand what she was attempting to tell him.

"Rogue, even if you did know that Mystique was pretending to be me and even if Magneto blackmailed you into silence it does not matter what you felt you had to do. Any actions you took were in self defense; for yourself and for the X-men," the Professor started to say strongly.

"What?" Jean asked quietly.

"Professor, what are you talking about?" Scott asked alarmed.

"He's speaking _hypothetically_, Scott," Rogue said quickly. She watched surprise cross the Professor's expression. "Right, Professor?" Rogue asked looking him in the eye.

"Y- yes, yes, of course.," the Professor said recovering quickly before he turned to look at the others.. "Rogue brought up Mystique and her past actions as a hypothetical _example; _which I choose to continue," he said smoothly.

"It's not like I had access to that information," Rogue lied. "None of us knew that Prof was missing and Magneto wasn't involved with what Mystique was doing here," she said.

"I must apologize to both of you," the Professor said. "Once again Rogue and I are continuing a conversation you do not know all the details of. I should have been more specific to begin with. Neither of us meant to frighten either of you," the Professor said.

"Yeah, we were just talking," Rogue shrugged.

"It's ah- it's alright," Scott said as he rubbed the back of his neck. "It's just this kind of talk is-" he started to say.

"Really uncomfortable," Rogue supplied.

"Yeah," Scott said.

"I've explained this to ya before, Scott," Rogue shrugged. "When Magneto involved we gotta talk about these issues. No matter how uncomfortable it makes us."

"Although, that does not necessary mean that we must all be present during these discussions," the Professor said.

"Prof, do ya wanna continue this conversation on the way to Mc Donald's. I'm seriously gonna be late if we don't go soon," Rogue said.

"My thoughts exactly," the Professor said as Rogue stood up. "If you two would please excuse us," he said before Jean nodded. "I will see you both at dinner," he smiled as they neared the exit.

"Yeah, see you later, Professor," Scott said uneasy. Rogue flashed him a reassuring smile, which he returned slightly, as she exited the room.

The two of them went in silence to the elevator. Neither of them speaking until the lifts door's closed; ensuing their words would not be heard.

"How long has Magneto's been blackmailing you?" the Professor asked as he glanced up at her.

"Too fucking long," she answered annoyed as her eyes met his. "I ain't going into more detail than that. I shouldn't have told you what I did but I am so tired of lying to you. If Magneto finds out that I told you than he take me from the institute and _never_ let me come back," she warned."It's part of our _agreement_, " she said bitterly.

"That will not happen," he said strongly. "I know how to keep a secret," he said as Rogue nodded.

"I know you do. Sorry, you had to lie to them. I know ya hate doing that," Rogue said.

"It's better if they don't know," he said.

"It's safer for me if no one else knows," she said.

"Agreed... for the moment," he added.

"Thanks," she said.

"Your welcome... Thank you for not making that promise," he said.

"I couldn't bring myself to. Not when I've already made a deal with him," she said.

"He should not have asked that of you," the Professor said in anger.

"He didn't. I offered," Rogue told him.

"What?" he asked confused. "Why?"

"I didn't know what else ta do. I knew so much and the only power I had was talking to Eric. I had to change his mind about his plans. You have no idea what I talked him out of and I can't explain either. I've already said too much," she said.

"Is there anything I can do to help?" he asked.

"Just knowing that I ain't alone anymore. That I got an ally I can talk to about all this is unbelievably helpful. I've lost count of how many lies I've had to tell to keep all of this straight. Just knowing I don't have to lie to you anymore. Or at least I know, you'll know I'm lying," she said.

"This whole situation has just- it's so fucking complicated," she exclaimed. "If I didn't have a prefect memory I don't if I'd be able to keep it up for as long as I have," she sighed. After a moment she smiled. She let out a soft laugh as she leaned her head back against the wall.

"Rogue?" he asked concerned.

"I'm actually talking to someone else besides Eric about this. I actually having a _honest_ conversation with someone I love," she said as tears of joy ran down her face. "No lying," she laughed "... No manipulation," she said as she opened her eyes; freeing the water trapped in the ducks of her eyes. "I ain't saying whatever the fuck I have ta to cover my ass," she said with a smile as she wiped the tears off her face

"It's nice being able to talk like this. I've missed this," she said as she glanced down at him. His eyes were fulled with emotion; sadness, concern, pity. "... But ah- aside from honest conversations," she started to say as calmed herself down, "if you could let me go meet up with Victor alone I'd appreciate it. If Magneto shows up I don't wanna have a hostage in the car with me. He's easier to deal with when it's just the two of us," she told him.

"...Alright," he sighed reluctantly .

"You can also help but not reading the fragment's mind. Eric hasn't done it in a while but he can overlap the fragment at any time. It would make my life a hell of a lot less stressful if I don't have ta worry about that. So, could ya please stop reading my mind?" she asked.

"I will," he said.

"Thank you," she said as she let out sigh in relief. "I need ta think. I sure I can come up with some more ways you can help me,"

"We'll think of something together," he said as he took her hand in his. "You are not alone longer. I will not sit by and allow him to continue to blackmail you," he said with conviction.

"Prof, I-" she started to say but paused. A part of her wanted to remind him that there was nothing he could do against Magneto but she didn't have the heart to at the moment. She was feeling hopeful and happy. She didn't want that feeling to end just yet.

"I'm sure we will," she smiled. She took her hand out of his and turned on the imagine inductor. She changed her body's position to imitate Logan's. "We'll talk later tonight, okay?" she asked.

"Please be careful," he said as the elevator doors opened.

"I always am," she told him as she walked away from him and towards the makeshift garage housing the institute's means of transportation.

_'No, you're not,'_ Max said irate. '_That was the most dangerous move you have made in weeks. Have you completely lost you're senses, Anna?'_ he said enraged.

_'No, I haven't,'_ she said annoyed. _'Your wrong it was the right move. The information's there. I found it easily as it was happening. Anyone capable of asking the right questions was gonna find out. And Prof kept asking them. It only a matter of time before he put it all together. I doing the same thing you did while you were holding me captive. You made sure to control when and what information I knew.' _

_'I'm doing the same with Prof. I ain't gonna explain half the shit I could. It's too dangerous too. I only gonna tell him what I really have to.'_

_'I thought you said you were finished lying to Charles,'_ he said.

_'I am. Next time I don't answer one of his questions all I gotta say is it ain't safe for me to tell you that. Which is the truth. I ain't lying. Best fucking part is_ _I won't have to worry about convincing anyone I'm okay. Prof will know that I ain't and he gonna help me keep that secret. Beside, the only way this can blow up in my face is if your counterpart finds out this. Who's gonna tell him?' s_he asked as she smiled._ 'Prof, sure as hell ain't. I'm not gonna,'_ she thought as she entered the garage.

_'Anna, you already have,'_ Max told her dryly.

_'What?'_ she asked as she froze. _'No, you're the frag- he set up cameras ta see when I-...no no no no no no no no no no,' _she thought frantically in disbelief as she lost control over her breathing._ 'You're lying. You're just the fragment. You're just messing with me to teach me a lesson,'_ she thought. _'I- I- I ah- I get it. It would be horrible if he found out what I just did. I get it. I do. The ramif-'_ she started to think.

_'Anna, stop ranting. I understand your disbelief. Allow me to provide you with some proof,'_ he said._ 'Turn around, towards the left corner of this building. You will see a camera there. For the record I would like to state that you did not face that corner as you entered. The only possible way I could be aware of it's position is if I had the camera put there myself,' _he told her. Slowly she followed his instructions. She let out a gasp as she spotted the camera.

_'If any of your instructors felt it safe enough to _inspect _either camera they would have found that they were not functional. They were for display purposes only, Anna,'_ he told her as tears ran down her face; she reached down and turned off the imagine inductor; she had not reason to leave it on. _'You and I are long over do for a conversatio_n in person. _Get in a van, not a motorcycle,' _he said strongly._ 'Not in your condition," _he said_. _

"_You will drive to_ the cafe._ My body is already there waiting. I will leave your mind once you have arrived but not a moment sooner. You _will_ follow these orders. I don't believe I need to describe to you how _displeased_ I will be if I have to collect you myself. Is that understood, Anna?" _he asked.

_'Yes, Max,'_ she thought tears running down her face before she slowly staggered up to one of the vans. She glanced behind her at the remains of the institute. '_This is the last time I'm gonna- Max_, c_an I- can I please go say goodbye?'_ she asked in tears.

_'No,'_ he said firmly; she cried loudly at his response as she leaned her head up against the van's door.

_'Please,'_ she begged._ 'If not gonna see them again, please let me-'_

_'Anna, you will not alert anyone _else_ to your situation,' _he told her. '_Open the door,'_ he ordered; she did so. _'Get in the van,'_ he commanded as she got into the driver's seat of the van. She leaned her head back against the seat as she fought back tears. She opened her eyes and glanced into the rear view mirror. She stared into her own tears fulled eyes. _'Take a- Take a few moments and drive when you're ready.'_ he ordered; his voice much kinder than it had been.

_'Max, I- I-I ah- ain't trying ta- ta disobey you or anything but I really don't think I'm gonna be able to drive. I don't- I don't wanna crash the van. Can you- can you please, please, have someone. Fucking anyone come get me. I understand if it can't be you,' _she thought. "Just- just- please," she muttered though her tears. She heard him sigh.

_'You will wait there for me. You will not move from that van. You will not leave that vehicle. If you do, if you contact Charles, Miss Grey or anyone else in any way I will consider our deal broken and I will go through with my threats, _all of them_,'_ he thought strongly._ "Do we understand one another?"_ he asked.

_'Yes,' _she thought quickly. "I won't go anywhere. I promise," she muttered.

_'For yours families' sake I hope you keep that promise,' _Max said before he left her mind.

* * *

Okay, so that's it for this chapter! Please review! I love hearing from you all!


	43. Chapter 42

Please enjoy... and then review! ^.^

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Forty Two

Magneto sat up from the king-sized bed he had left his body on. It was dangerous, he knew, to leave his body unattended as often as he did. If any of his enemies found it, he knew it would be his demise. That was why he always hid his body in a small room which was surrounded by two feet of metal on all sides. Only he knew of its existence. Well, him and Rogue, if she ever cared enough about the infrastructure of the cafe to look.

This was the fourth trip he had made between his body and the institute today. After some practice the journey only took a little over five minutes. A time frame he found to be very useful.

Max reached his hand out and called upon his powers to bring his cellular phone to him. He opened it and searched his contacts for the number he needed. He waited patiently as it rang.

"Yeah?" an annoyed voice asked from the other end.

"Victor, how are you?" Max asked pleasantly.

"I'm okay. I gotta feeling I ain't gonna be after I talk to you, Magnus," Victor said jokingly. Max humored his employee with a soft chuckle. "How are ya?" he asked.

"I'm doing well. I wish I could state the same of others in my employ," he said before he let out a long sigh. "Victor, my friend, I understand you are on your vacation and under normal circumstances I would never dream to disturb you. However, the situation calls for a service that you alone are best capable of," Max stated.

"Yeah, I heard. How many times does that kid gotta mess up before you fire her ass?" Sabertooth asked. Max suppressed the urge to tell Saberooth to keep his options to himself. After nearly forty years of loyal service the mutant felt he had to right to make such comments. Max had used their assumed friendship to his advantage more than once. He was about to again.

"Actually, Ms. Braddock was not at fault. This time it was Pyro," Max informed him dryly.

"Huh," Sabertooth said giving out a short laugh. "That boy's always been a loose cannon."

"Trust me, old friend I am more than aware of Pyro's _wild _streak. Now," he said getting back to the topic he actually wanted to discuss, "if you would call Amelia. She will teleport you to the scent's trail," Max ordered.

"Magus, listen, ya know I don't mind working overtime. But tonight I ah- I had plans to meet up with my kid," Sabertooth told him.

"You're in Washington?" Max asked his voice portraying false curiosity. Max knew full well that his employee was not referring to _Graydon_ Creed.

"No, my other kid. Rogue. First time we're getting dinner in years. It's kinda a big deal," he said. "If I could go get food with her real quick? I'll cut it short an-" Sabertooth started to say.

"Victor, you know how time sensitive these issues can be," he said.

"Yeah, I-"

"Actually, I've been meaning to speak with Charles for some time now. I can pass the message along to Rogue _personally_ and let her know that nothing short of an order from me would have kept you keeping your appointment with her," Max said.

"I appreciate that, Magneto, bu-" Sabertooth tried to say.

"Wonderful, then it's settled," he said with a smile. "I'm certain your daughter will understand and don't concern yourself over my involvement. I'm glad to offer the favor," he said with false glee. He did not allow Victor time to reply. "Call Amelia, now," he commanded mirthlessly before he hung up the phone.

Sabertooth had accumulated quite a few privileges over the years; a very generous salary, twenty-five days of vacation time (not including holidays) to be taken at his leisure, among others.

_'Even Victor wouldn't dare call back to argue his point after being given a direct order from me,'_ he thought. _'That's one issue dealt with,' he_ thought to himself as he opened the phone again and dialed another number. Although spying on the X-Men, Rogue in particular, was high on his list of priorities. He did have other pressing matters he had to contend with.

Anna Marie Creed was not the only mutant to recently escape from his captivity.

* * *

Rogue sat in the driver's seat of the van. Her head leaned against the headrest and her eyes were closed. Her body shook slightly as she continued to fight back silent tears. After thirty minutes she still hadn't fully recovered from the shock of what Max had told her.

She wondered how long it would be before she would see her Kurt or Kitty again.

_'Maybe I could talk him inta-' _she started to think. Her thought were cut off when she heard a low crash in the distance. _'Max?'_ she asked as she opened her eyes. Her eyes widened in fear as she saw Juggernaut, helmet-less, marching onto the institute's grounds. '_What?' _she asked in disbelief. _'Max's was supposed to take him into his custody after the fight at the damn. He wanted ta recruit him. How'd he es-' _she started to ask.

_'Some of my people failed to follow protocol and he managed to escape two days ago. After he forced Elisabeth Braddock into putting mental blocks up in his mind,' _the fragment of Magneto told her.

_'Oh my god, without his powers-' _Rogue started to think.

_'Charles, will just be a helpless man in a wheel chair,'_ the fragment added.

'_Who Juggernaut wants ta kill,'_ she finished alarmed as she opened the car door.

_'Anna,'_ the fragment warned.

"Fuck, fuck, fuck," she muttered as she slammed it closed. _'I can't get out of the van. Max will- I can't warn the Professor either. I can't tell anyone anything... Shit, what do I- …'_ she asked herself as she watched him get closer and closer to the elevator. _'I can't get out of the van...,'_ she thought as she quickly took off her gloves; tossing them to seat next to her._ 'Doesn't mean I can't hit him with one,'_ she thought determined as she pulled the seat belt across her chest. _'Maybe the noise will get someone's attention,' _she thought desperately as she turned the keys, already in the ignition, and started the car.

_'Anna, this is, without a doubt in my mind, the worst plan you have ever conceived,'_ the fragment of Max commented.

_'I know,'_ she thought as she pushed the gas pedal to the floor. As she raced towards Juggernaut, eighty miles per hour, he noticed her coming towards him. However, he didn't have enough time to get out of her path and she hit him head on. She fought the urge to scream out in pain at the impact; her entire body thrusting against the seat belt.

Her head whipped forward as an airbag exploded in her face. She saw stars as the sound of breaking glass echoed in her ears. Dazed, she managed to lift her head up as she felt liquid running down her face from her nose. As a few drops dripped onto her lips she realized it was blood.

"I am gonna kill you, bitch," she heard Juggernaut say in anger as she made eye contact with him. Her eyes widened in fear as she realized the car crash had no visible physical effect on him.

She fought unconsciousness as her trembling hands unbuckled the seat-belt. Within seconds he marched up to the driver's seat door. He ripped what was left of the door off of the van and aimed a punch at her face. She tried to ignore the pain her body was in as she threw her left arm up. She screamed out in pain as she felt the bones in her arm shatter against his fist. He reached out and wrapped his hand around her neck. She let out a gasp as she felt his mind, energy, and powers flow into her.

"Son of a," Juggernaut started to say as he started to pull his hand back; his fingers leaving her neck. Armed with his strength Rogue grabbed his fingers. Her nails digging into the top of his hand drew blood as she pulled his palm bare against her skin. She gasped as she saw his other fist come towards her.

She laid back, pulling him with her further into the car, his head hitting onto the door's frame, crushing it even more. She looked into his eye as she had pulled him; it seemed to have actually affected him somewhat. Rogue screamed out in agony, tears falling freely, as she pulled him against it, again and again. All the while her powers drew precious energy out of him and into her giving her the stamina she needed to keep fighting.

She had no idea how long she had absorbed him or how many times his head hit into the frame. All she knew was they were both bleeding and it working.

Finally, she watched his eyes rolled into the back of his head. She pulled him another three times just to be sure he wouldn't recover instantly. As he fell to his knees she sat up with him. She felt the need to keep hold of his hand. She couldn't let him wake up.

_'He'll kill me,' _Rogue yelled in her mind; the first coherent thought she had had since she her head hit the airbag.

_'Yeah, I will, fucking, kill you, bitch,' _Juggernaut's voice ringed in her mind.

_'Juggernaut, get back with the others,' _Max commanded.

_'I am gonna rip you apart, one limb at a time. Fir__st your arms, then I'll break-' _Juggernaut continued to taunt. Slowly his voice got softer and softer; until it thankfully stopped all together. She released his hand and watched it fall to the ground.

With effort she managed to turn her body and leaned back against the seat. She picked up her broken arm, hissing in pain as she carefully placed it on her lap. She was leaning on glass, she knew, but leaving the van wasn't an option. Although given how much pain she was in, comfort wasn't a consideration of hers at the moment. She just hoped that Magneto would show up before it was too late.

She sat there staring out blankly into the sky, crying, and covered in sweat and blood, completely miserable and alone.

* * *

Charles Xavier exited the elevator with Storm and Beast. They were on their way to fix dinner. They had been having, finally it seemed to him, a pleasant conversation between the three of them. A welcomed change when compared to the stress-inducing, complex conversation they had engaged in for the past few days. Charles had every intention of returning to thoughts of Rogue and plans to free her from Magneto's grasp, but he was allowing himself the next hour to simply breathe. He knew Rogue would not begrudge him a moment of relaxation.

At least he had been relaxing until his eyes caught sight of the T.V's motoring the institute's grounds.

"Oh my stars and gathers," Beast muttered under his breath. They all saw Juggernaut on the ground; his head cut open; blood pouring out.

"I think there's someone in the van," Storm stated concerned; from the angle to camera was shooting at it was unclear.

"Is that Rogue?" Beast asked confused.

"Go," Charles ordered. Storm and Beast ran from the room. Charles put his fingers to his temple._ 'All X-Men are to report-' _he started to project into his students mind, but his thought was cut off when he saw Magneto appear on the screen. _'Everyone is to stay inside. I repeat no student is to leave any sub-level. X-Men included. Stay inside,' _he ordered as he turned to make his way to the elevator. "Hank, quickly, I need to get outside," he called out. Beast ran back. He swiftly moved behind Charles. Beast pushed the wheel chair as fast as he could without breaking it.

* * *

"Anna?" Magneto asked as he approached her. "My god what happened?" concern colored his voice as he took in the severity of her injuries. She was covered in blood and there were small cuts all over her body. He examined at her face and found small burn marks marring her delicate skin. His eyes traced the thick, dark crimson line that trailed from her swelling nose, over her lips and down her chin. Even though he knew that a good portion of the blood that covered her was Juggernaut's, the blood that did seep from her was cause for concern.

He pulled out his cell phone and quickly dialed.

"Ameila?" he asked into the phone.

"Magneto?" Ameila asked irritated. "You usually have others-" she started to say.

"I know, but it's an emergency. I need you to bring your daughter to the Xavier Institute within the next five minutes or _Anna Marie Creed_ will bleed to death."

"What?" he heard Sabertooth scream in the background.

"We're on our way," Amelia said before hanging up the phone. He quickly put it back in his pocket.

"Anna?" he asked again. "Are you conscience?" he asked.

"...Y-ye...es," she managed to mumble but he could tell it had hurt her to say that one word. "I- I,... sta- ay...," she tried to say as her eyes fluttered open

"Shh... Anna, you're hurting yourself. Whatever it is, it can wait," he told her gently. She grabbed onto his arm. Her strength surprised him.

"I- sta-sta- ayed i-in the van," she said stuttered while staring into his eyes. His eyes widened as she started coughing.

"I did this," Max uttered horrified. He received no answer, his girl was too busy fighting her lungs. _'She couldn't call for help. She saw Juggernaut and had no choice but to fight him alone... without leaving the van,' _he thought shocked. "Anna, I am so sorry. If I even had an inkling that that promise would cause this much harm to you I would never had forced you to make it. I was angry. I-" he said quickly.

"Fuck you," she spat out before she coughed once more. His eyes narrowed for the briefest of moments before refocusing on her body. He took in her injuries once more.

_'She has every right to be angry with me,' _he thought.

"Rogue," Max heard Charles call out from behind him.

"I release you from that promise. You may communicate with whomever you choose without consequence," Max whispered before Storm ran up to his side.

"By the Goddess," Storm muttered in disbelief.

"We need a first aid kit immediately," Max said as he turned to look her in the eyes. "And blood if your infirmary has any of her type," he told her.

"I don't believe we've stocked our blood supply yet," she said gravely.

"Do you have a BD Vancutainer?" Max asked as he heard Charles and Beast join them.

"Yes, we do," Charles answered as he made eye contact with Magneto.

"Then that will suffice. I'll give her as much of my blood as she needs," Magneto said.

"Your blood t-" Storm started to ask.

"B positive, the same as Rogue's," Magneto said. "Charles, is Mr. Wagner present? We need to get her to your infirmary," he said.

"I'll call him now as well as Logan," Charles said.

"I've already called a healer, Charles. Sabertooth is with her. There is no reason for Rogue to obtain any more nightmares from her experiences today," Magneto said.

"Agreed," Charles said reluctantly before he placed his fingers on his temples. Once he saw that Charles was clearly doing his part Max turned his attention back to Rogue.

"We need to get her out from there," Max said as he used his powers to slowly dissipate the metal of the van's frame. He used the metal to make a long flat slab to place Rogue on. Together, Storm and Beast went to pick her up. Rogue screamed out in pain, they ceased their movements instantly.

"Rogue, I'm so sorry," Storm said softly. Rogue's scream died down to a light whimper.

"Charles, is there any way you can keep Rogue from feeling the pain? There's no reason for her to suffer any further," Max said.

"No, no there isn't," Charles said as he moved closer. "Rogue, do you object?" he asked her. The slight shake of her head was almost unperceived. "...Alright, then close your eyes and breathe," he said. In a flash Rogue's expression changed from pain-stricken to almost peaceful.

_'If only there wasn't so much blood,'_ he thought to himself. "Alright, let's try this again," he said as he moved behind Beast. He gently moved his hands to cradle Rogue's head. "Carefully, just because she can't feel the pain does not mean our actions won't cause her more harm," he warned.

"I know," Beast said under his breath as they lifted her up. Out of the corner of his eye Magneto could see a cloud of mist swoop in from above and land on the ground as they placed Rogue on the slab.

As Nightcrawler teleported in front of the elevator the mist turned into three people; Sabertooth, Ameila Vought and Anna Vought a young fourteen year old mutant with black hair, brown skin and green eyes.

"What the fuck happened to- Juggernaut?" Sabertooth asked enraged. "I'm gonna-" he started to say as he headed towards the man's body. Anna Vought went to Rogue's side.

"Mom, I've never," Anna Vought started to say as Nightcrawler teleported to Rogue's side.

"What happened to her?" he asked, shocked.

"Leave him, Victor. Saving your daughter's life is far more important than ending his," Max said as he placed a hand on the Sabertooth's chest, attempting to hold him back.

"It's alright, Anna. Do the best you can," Amelia said to her daughter as Storm tried to calm Nightcrawler down.

"She's going to be okay," Storm said. Everyone was talking, explaining, and nothing was being done. Magneto glanced down at Rogue; her eyes stared up into his.

"Help," Rogue mouthed.

"Enough," Magneto and Charles screamed in unison. They made eye contact for a brief second as all the others fell silent. It's seemed they were of the same mind on this issue.

"Kurt, you will teleport Rogue, Magneto, Sabortooth, and this young woman-" Charles started to say.

"And her mother," Amelia interjected.

"And her mother to the infirmary," Charles repeated with a nod. "The rest of us will take the elevator and be there within moments," he added.

"Why can't Rogue just absorb Sabertooth here," Kurt asked.

"Too much glass," Sabertooth said as he walked up to Kurt and Rogue. "Kid won't have my healing factor forever. We gotta get every fucking shard out or it might kill her later," he said annoyed.

"The sooner-" Magneto started to say.

"What about Juggernaut?" Beast asked.

"Miss Vought can heal him _after_ we've ensured Rogue's survival," Magneto said coldly.

"Fine by me," Sabertooth commented as he kneed down next to the slab touching it.

"Charles?" Storm asked.

"Kurt, go quickly please and bring back a first aid kit. Hank you alone will work on Juggernaut," Charles ordered.

"Yes, Professor. Everyone grab on," Nightcrawler said as kneed down beside Rogue. "Hi, nice to meet you," Kurt said with a sad smile as he put his hand on the metal slab and Anna Vought's shoulder. Max put his foot onto the slab as Amelia put her hand on the Anna Vought's other shoulder.

"We're ready, Kurt," Amelia said before Nightcrawler teleported them away.

* * *

Fifteen minutes later Magneto sat in the infirmary on the bed next to Rogue's. His blood drained out of his arm through a tube, into a bag, into an IV, into Rogue. Rogue's eyes were closed. She wasn't feeling any pain, but her face kept changing expression. He knew what those sporadic changes meant; she had escaped into a memory.

_'The questions remain: whose and when?'_ Max asked. He was drawn out of his thought as he heard Sabertooth and Wolverine growl at one another. He sighed as he stood up and walked towards the door. The tube gave just enough room to do so. "Victor," he said strongly as he cracked the door open. "I already ordered you to stand or sit as far away from Wolverine as you possible can without leaving the room," he said.

"Bastard keeps glaring at me," Saberooth said.

"I'll give ya something ta_ glare at_, Bub," Wolverine said with malice in his voice. Magneto felt Wolverine attempt to unsheathe his claws but he used his control over metal to keep him from being able to do so. Magneto had no patients for this.

"This is neither the time nor the place. If I hear one more outburst I will knock you both unconscious and hold your hand, Victor, up to Rogue's face myself. Control yourselves," he ordered before he closed the door. "They're worse than children," he commented under his breath as he walked back to the bed and sat down again.

Amelia and Anna Vought ignored his comments and all the short conversations he had had in the past few minutes. They were busy at work removing all the glass from Rogue's cuts. Earlier Jean Gray had been in the room levitating Rogue's body into the air so they could get all cuts on her backside. After ten minutes they had finished and sent her out of the room again.

Amelia's past experience as a nurse became incredibly useful as she quickly taught her daughter how to disinfect the cuts. Anna was also able to accelerate the healing of the smaller cuts as they went. The larger ones were too much of a struggle for the young mutant whose control over her powers was still developing.

"That's all of it," Amelia Vought said a few minutes later as she hovered in front of Rogue; a pair of tweezers in her hand.

"You're certain," Magneto asked.

"Yes," she answered. "Anna, would you go let Victor know we need him?" she asked as Magneto removed the IV from his and Rogue's arms.

"Sure, Mom," Anna said as she healed the small wound caused by the IV in both Rogue's and Magneto's arm.

"Thank you," Magneto said with a smile. She smiled back slightly before she turned away from him and put her pair of tweezers down on a table next to the shards of glass she had extracted. She cracked opened the door.

"Mr. Creed," Anna called out. Magneto had offered to help with the extraction but was told that there would be too many body surrounding Rogue's if he did. It was the reason only the three of them were in the room.

The others, Nightcrawler, Cyclops, Jean Gray, Wolverine, Sabertooth, and Shadowcat, stood just outside in the hall eagerly awaiting a positive prognosis. Charles, Beast, and Storm were outside dealing with Juggernaut. A progress report, from five minutes before, told them that the man would live. Charles was forced to stay outside, subduing his half-brother until the proper authority arrived to take him into custody.

Sabertooth walked into the room. Anna closed the door behind him.

"Alright, let's do this," Sabertooth said as he walked up to the bed. He put bare hand on her exposed shoulder. It took a few second but Sabertooth fell to the floor unconscious. Max watched as all the cuts still present healed and then hair rapidly grow all over her body. The hair on her head grew down to her back for some reason as her nails grew to almost claw-like. Magneto's eyes widened in shock. He hadn't known that anyone's powers could transform her physically, aside from Mystique's.

_'Who else's powers would affect her like this?'_ he asked himself curiously, not certain if he wanted himself or Rogue to ever truly know the answer as he lifted Sabertooth up and carried him to the spare bed. _'The girl's been through enough.' _

"Mom, why isn't she waking up?" Anna asked her mother pulling Max out of his thoughts.

"Rogue, is currently using her powers. She's exploring some memory within her mind. She'll awaken when she is ready to and not a moment sooner," Max said. "She's going to be just fine. Thanks to your help, Miss Vought," he said. Anna smiled sheepishly at him as Amelia put her hand on her daughter's shoulders.

"We need to get back to the house. I've been gone too long at it is," Amelia stated; it was the first sentence Amelia had said directly to him in over five years.

"I understand. Thank you for your assistance," he told her politely.

"You're welcome," she replied. After a second she looked him in the eyes again. "...I would have raised them both, Magneto. Neither of them would have lacked love," she said.

"I know," Max said. "I watched you raise, Anna and Anna Marie. Your ability to love and care for a child was never in question, Amelia. _I_ made the mistake of listening to Irene. For some reason the woman has no qualms with manipulating Rogue to ends I do not comprehend. Once I manage to locate Irene I'll be sure to ask _why_ and assure she is never able to do so again," Magneto finished darkly. Amelia glared at him curiously.

"You care about Anna Marie, don't you?" she asked.

"Yes, I do. She is the most gifted student I have ever had the pleasure of instructing. I enjoy making her laugh," Max said honestly.

"You tell jokes, now?" Amelia asked in disbelief.

"Not many, no. Obscenities," he said with a short chuckle. "She finds it hilarious whenever I use them. Something about the tone my voice has. She explained it to me one. It amuses me to no end," he grinned. "She's in good hands, Amelia. She's surrounded by people who care about her. Today was an unfortunate accident that I know Charles and I will never allow to happen again," he told her. She held his gaze for a long moment.

"... If it's for Anna Marie you can call me again," Amelia said.

"Thank you," Max replied. She nodded before she turned herself and daughter into mist and teleported out of the room.

"Max," he heard Anna's voice from behind him.

_'She must have been waiting till we were alone,'_ he thought as he turned to face her; she was now sitting up in the bed.

"Could you come sit down? You and me need to talk," she told him.

* * *

Thank you for reading! Please review!

I'll have the next chapter up soon.


	44. Chapter 43

Please enjoy... and then review? ^.^

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Forty-Three

The time it took to get her into the infirmary and set up to be healed felt like hours to Rogue. She knew it couldn't have been that long. She would be dead if it had.

_'Like Juggernaut,'_ she thought to herself.

_'Anna, we don't know that,'_ the fragment of Magneto said.

_'I cracked his head open and watched blood pour out for god knows how long. Who survives that?'_ she asked sadly before she opened her eyes.

She glanced up at Amelia.

"You're going to be fine, Anna Marie," Amelia said softly.

"Thank you," Rogue whispered weakly.

"Victor," Magneto yelled catching her attention. She glanced up to see him standing by the door. "Sit or stand as far away from Wolverine as you possibly can without leaving the hallway. That's an order!" Max said firmly. Rogue closed her eyes. She laid there as she had in the van: thoughtless. She was too burnt-out and depressed to think.

* * *

"Anna," Max's voice whispered in Rogue's ear. It took her a moment to realize that his voice wasn't coming from her own mind. Her eyes fluttered open for a moment. She saw Max staring down at her. "I just wanted to let you know that Juggernaut is alive," he said. Her eyes snapped opened. "Yes, you heard me correctly, Anna Marie, he's alive. Mr. McCoy, apparently, is a miracle worker."

"Not that I care whether Juggernaut lived or died but I can only imagine the abusive notions you might have started to entertain about yourself if you gave serious thought to the bastard's death," Max said with a smirk; causing her to give out a short laugh. "Well, you can stop debasing yourself now. He'll live another day," he said as he stared down into her eyes. "And so will you my girl, I promise," he said. She smiled at that, tears forming in her eyes. There was so much she wanted to say him. She opened her mouth to speak.

"Shh," Max hushed gently. "I know," he said tenderly with a smile. "There are an unfathomable amount of words that need to be spoken between us and we will have all the time in the world to do so," he said before a smirk came to his face. "And if I know you half as well as I think I do, I'd wager that you currently have an uncontrollable urge to punch me in face with as much force as you can muster," he said lightheartedly. She couldn't help but laugh.

"It's deserved, I know. Your arm will be fixed shortly and then you'll have your chance. Or perhaps you might torture me with horrendous rap music again?" he asked playfully as she laughed softly as her eyes closed. She could feel tears rolling down her face. "The form of retribution is yours to choose, my girl. I will not deny you that," he said as she opened her eyes again and looked up at him. "Now, just try to relax, Anna. You'll be back to your old self very soon," he said as he backed away. "My apologies Miss Vought, I will not be in your way again," she heard Max say as she closed her eyes.

_'Max?'_ Rogue called out into the darkness.

_'Yes, Anna?'_ the fragment asked.

_'You- you said you wanted to show me something?' _she asked.

_'Actually, it was my counterpart who-'_ he stated to say.

_'I don't care which of you it was right now. The two of you wanted ta show me something right?' _

_'Yes,'_ he answered.

_'So go ahead before I change my mind,'_ she said. Within a moment she felt herself being pulled into his mind and into a memory.

**She was Magneto, staring down at herself. She knew this memory; they were both sitting in the kitchen of the Xavier Institute. This was one of the longest days of her life. ****It was**** the first time he had allowed her to be aware that he was holding her captive in her home. **

"**Are…are you in love with me?" Rogue asked breathlessly. **

_**'What?' **_**Magneto thought; caught completely off guard by the question. **_**'No, I care about her of course. But I'm not-'**_** he thought as he ran his hands up and down her arms. '**_**That is- Is that what this feeling is?' **_**he asked himself as he stared into her eyes. **

_**'I look at you, Anna, and I think about everything I wish to show you; to teach you. I look down onto that beautiful face of yours and I think about how much I would like to see you smile and laugh. I think about how desperately I wish to be the cause of those emotions,' **_**he thought. He leaned in and kissed her. He smiled against her lips as he felt her lean into him. He broke it a few moments later. **_**'Yes, I... I know this feeling,'**_** he thought as he sat back in his seat. **

"**Eric?" she asked. He sighed happily as he brushed her hair behind her ear tenderly.**

"**Yes, yes I am," he answered. **

Rogue pulled out of the memory.

_**'**__You really are in love with me,' _she thought lay there for a few minute accepting what she had seen as fact, replaying the memory as many times as she needed to.

* * *

_'Anna,'_ the fragment shouted.

_'Yeah?_' she asked as she pulled out the memory.

_'You've absorbed Victor a few minutes ago. I thought you would like to know,'_ he said.

_'Thanks,'_ she said as she opened her eyes.

"... If it's for Anna Marie you can call me again," Amelia said.

_'She really cared about me,'_ Rogue thought.

_'I'm afraid, Anna, you don't the half of it. Once you regain the urge to learn about your past, I'll explain,'_ the fragment said.

_'Thanks,' _she thought as she sat up. She glanced up at Max once she was in the position she wanted to sit in. It was just the two of them now, and an unconscious Victor. Not that her father counted given his state.

"Max," Rogue called out softly. She watched he turned to face her. "Could you sit down? You and me need to talk," she told him

* * *

"With pleasure, Anna," Max answered. She seemed very tense sitting up in the bed, he noticed as he walked toward her._ 'Perhaps because she's wearing so little,' _he thought to himself. In the process of healing Amelia had to cut away most of her clothing to get at the cuts. She was dressed only in a bra, underwear, and a large amount of fur-like hair covered almost every inch of her body. Although, the cuts were gone the blood they produced were not. A strange mix of hers, Juggernaut's, and quite possibly his own blood, covered her body, drying in the hair. He wasn't sure she even realized the state she was in.

"Wouldn't you like to shower first before we speak?" he asked.

"What do you-" she started to ask as she glanced down at her body. She gasped. "I didn't realize that I was still-" she started to say as tears formed in her eyes. He had lost count of how many times she had woken up in anguish after nightmares of blood filled carnage.

"Shh," Max hushed as he rushed to her side and sat on the bed in front of her. He placed glove-covered hands on her shoulders. She leaned her head forward, resting it against his chest as she cried softy. _'For her to actually be living though a situation like this, to know that these memories are hers alone- …'_ he mused. "My dear girl, I am so sorry to have caused you this pain," he murmured as he gently caressed the top of her head.

"I wish you would stop saying that," she whispered.

"What?" he asked. He watched her lift her head off his chest and gaze into his eyes.

"You keep _saying_ you're sorry, but then something else fucked up happens to me because of you. I know… I know now that you love me and I appreciate that. I care about you too, Max way more than I should. But how sorry can you really be when you're still willing to keep me from seeing people I love? If Juggernaut didn't show up today I'd be in Jericho with you trying to talk you into letting me come home, _again_," she stressed. "This needs to stop. I can't handle being your captive anymore and I shouldn't have to," she said strongly.

"Anna, I never meant to-" he started to say before he heard a knock at the door.

* * *

_'Damn it,' _Rogue thought frustrated. They were finally getting somewhere. "We can't be seen like this. Logan will freak out," she said.

"I know," he said as he removed his hands and stood up. He took a seat in the chair next to her bed. "Yes," he asked annoyed as they both turned their heads towards the door.

"Hello?" Kurt asked sheepishly as he cracked the door open. He stuck his head in and caught sight of Rogue. "Oh sorry," he said quickly as he closed his eyes. Rogue couldn't help but smile.

"It's alright, Kurt," Rogue said with a soft laugh. She was overjoyed to be speaking to her little brother.

"Are you okay?" Kurt asked.

"Yeah, I'm- I'm gonna live. I'm fine, Kurt," she said.

"That's a relief," Kurt sighed joyfully.

"Kurt, I - all I wanna do right now is tell you to come here and hug me like crazy," Rogue said, tears forming in her eyes again. "But I'm really, really gross right now and I don't wanna get blo-" she started to say but hesitated. She couldn't bring herself to say it out loud. She gasped as she felt Max's hand on hers.

"But," Max started to say as she made eye contact, "she doesn't wish to get any sweat on you, Mr. Wagner. Your sister's very considerate," Max finished for her.

"Thanks," she mouthed. He nodded with a smile as he squeezed her hand reassuringly. "Kurt, could you ask Kitty to go into-" Rogue started to ask as Kitty phrased through Kurt and the door; Max let go of her hand before her roommate saw them.

"Kitty," Kurt exclaimed.

"What? I heard my name. We're, like, in an emergency," she said as she completely passed through him and into the room. "Oh my god, Rogue," she gasped as she caught sight of Rogue.

"That ba-" Rogue started to say as Max stood up from the chair. She glanced up at him curiously as he pulled his trench coat off the back of his chair. "Eric, what are you-" she started to ask. She gasped as Logan and Scott busted into room.

"Whoa," Kurt exclaimed as he was pushed into the room.

"Rogue?" Scott asked alarmed as Max draped his coat over her body.

"I'm fine," Rogue said annoyed as she pulled the coat up over her chest. "Kurt, I got something covering me now. You can open your eyes," she said with a smile.

"Everything is alright," Max said as he retook his seat. Kurt grinned at Rogue as he gave her a thumbs-up.

"Not with you in the room," Wolverine said with malice. "I felt what ya did before, bucket head," he said irate as he lifted his hand.

_'He tried to take out his claws and Max won't let him?' _she guessed. Rogue had to keep herself from rolling her eyes. She had heard the fight Logan and Victor had tried to start before Max had to go out into the hall and yell at them both. He actually had to order Victor to the opposite side of the hallway to keep them apart.

"Ya mean, how he kept you and Victor from trying to rip each other to pieces while I was _bleeding_ to death," she said annoyed. "How dare he," Rogue said sarcastically as she watched both Scott and Logan's eyes widen in shock. "Magneto may be a kidnapping, staking, manipulative, jackass, who doesn't know how to take no for an answer. But at least he understands when it's time to call a _truce _and save someone's life. My life, Logan," she said strongly.

"Kid, I," Logan started to say; he had an apologetic look on his face.

"I get it, Logan. I got it from Victor's point of view. You two look at each other and all ya see is red. But there's a time and a place for shit like that. So, Magneto kept you two from going at it. Even _if_ he violated your personal space and kept ya from using your claws against Victor, you two were in a small hallway with a bunch of teenagers. _I_ know you would never hurt anyone. But Magneto's only frame of reference of you is during battles where's there's plenty of room to dice up the half the landscape. Was it really so wrong of him to keep the fight between you and Victor from escalating to that point?" she asked.

"No, I- I guess it wasn't," Logan admitted begrudgingly. "But what about when this truce ends, then what?" he asked.

"It's not going to," Magneto said. Her eyes immediately went to his as she took a deep breath. "Unless you're objecting, Anna?" he asked her with a raised eyebrow as he leaned forward in his seat; staring at her intently.

"I'm not," Rogue spoke up quickly. "I'm tired of fighting you, Eric," she admitted.

"As am I," Max said. She knew it was true and that he was just as tired of fighting as she was. It was one of the many reasons he had offered her a place by his side. "I came back into your life to help you gain control over your powers, not to hold you captive for the rest of your life. But you have access to so much I refuse to allow Charles to be aware of: secrets I have never told another living soul, never mind my enemies," he said.

"I know. Doesn't mean I like it," she said.

"I may not have had to keep secrets from loved ones but I do understand the pains in doing so," Max said.

"Half the time I feel like your accomplice 'cause of it. I hate feeling like this," she said. She wasn't saying nearly as much as she wanted to and she knew he was holding back as well. There was only so much they could discuss openly in front of the others.

"A traitor?" he said. She nodded sadly. "We'll need to discuss the terms of this truce," he said. She nodded again.

"Tonight's not really good. I need ta get cleaned up. Getting all this hair off is gonna take forever. And I really need to go to school tomorrow. I shouldn't miss another day," she told him.

"Dinner tomorrow then?" Max asked.

"Okay, and before ya ask, I'm fine with sea food," she said, causing Max to smirk. They both knew which restaurant they were going to be eating at the next night. "I'm sure Prof won't mind either," she said nonchalantly. His smirk faded.

"Must you bring Charles?" Max groaned, she heard Logan snort next to her.

"Yes, I _must_," she said annoyed. "This truce between us is gonna affect all the X-Men, ain't it?" she asked.

"Yes," he said dryly.

"Then he needs to be there as _leader_ of the X-Men," she stated.

"Very well," he sighed. "But you and I do need to have a conversation in private. There are aspects of this truce we can't speak of in front Charles. There's a _list_ we need to draw up" he said.

_'List?'_ she asked herself. _'Right, so I can't get away with talking about,"_ she thought rolling her eyes._ 'Wait a minute,' _she thought as her eyes widened._ 'When we ended the other deal we never made a new list of what I couldn't tell Prof. So, _technically_, I never promised to not tell anyone I was being blackmailed. It was only_ implied_ that I wouldn't. Truce or no truce, he can't remove me because of what I told Prof, right?'_ she herself happily. "... I do _love_ exploiting loopholes," she said staring into his eyes. His eyes were narrowed for a moment before they lightened as he sighed.

"I'm aware," he with a soft chuckle. "Forgive me for taking _precautions_ to keep you from doing so," he smirked. The word 'again' remained unstated, hanging in the air between the two of them.

"I understand," she laughed.

"Is there some joke the rest of us ain't getting?" Logan asked annoyed.

"Yes, actually," Max answered dryly as he stood up. "Five o' clock?" he asked Rogue, once again ignoring the others.

"I gotta-" she started to say.

"Ask Charles," Max finished, slightly irritated.

"Yeah," she shrugged gleefully.

"Call me later tonight, when you can, to confirm. But don't give Charles my phone number," he said annoyed.

"I won't," she smiled, suppressing the urge to laugh at his tone.

"And speaking of my phone, I left it in that coat," he said gesturing to it with his hand.

"Oh right," she said as she stuck her hand in the coat's left pocket and took it out. "Here," she held it out for him.

"Thank you," he took it out of her hand. "Just one more thing, this comment I am addressing to my counterpart in your mind," he said. Her eyes widened in shock. "Answer any and all questions or concerns she has _honestly_," he said.

"Meaning what? The fragment's been lying to her?" Logan asked outraged.

"Logan, please, not now," Rogue asked desperately. "I'm still too burnt-out for that kinda conversation," she said.

"Kid," he started to say.

"I know. I'm concerned to, but whatever it is, it can wait a few hours, okay?" she almost pleaded. Logan sighed.

"Anna," Max said; calling for her attention. "I am sorry for all of it. I never meant to cause you such pain, _ever_. I hope you know that," he said.

"I do, Eric," she said softly. He held her gaze for another moment before backing away.

"If you'll excuse me," Max said as he headed towards the exit.

"...Wait, Eric?" Rogue asked.

"Yes?" Max asked as he turned to face her again.

"Could you take him with you?" she asked her head gesturing towards Victor. "Without you here to mediate things-," she started to say.

"I understand," Max said with the slightest trace of annoyance in his voice.

"Do ya mind?" she asked.

"Doing you a favor, no, not at all," Max said, smiling reassuringly at her, before he walked over to the bed Victor was lying on.

_'Well, if he doesn't mind,'_ she thought as Max picked Victor up and threw him over his shoulder. "And hm- ...Could you tell Victor that I'll call him, like, Thursday for a rain-check on that big mac we were supposed to get tonight?" Rogue asked.

"I'll pass the message along," Max said as he walked towards the door; Scott and Logan moved to give Max room to exit.

"Thank you," she called out as he exited.

"You're welcome," he said as he closed the door behind him with his powers. Rogue let out a sigh in relief.

"Man, I didn't understand half that conversation you two were having," Scott said bewildered.

"You weren't supposed to," Rogue said honestly. "Kitty," she started to ask before Scott or Logan could comment on her statement, "could you please go to our room and get-" she started to ask.

"Everything?" Kitty finished with a smile.

"Yeah," Rogue laughed.

"I'm like four steps ahead of you, Rogue. Jean?" Kitty called out. A moment later Jean walked into the room with a towel and some of Rogue's cloths in her arms and an assortment of items floating around her: shampoo, conditioner, soap, razors, and various other necessities.

"Do you want to take a shower while I heat up the wax?" Jean asked.

"Jean, you have no have no idea how much I _love_ that plan," Rogue said. Kitty giggled and Jean smiled at her.

"Okay, all boys out," Kitty ordered. "This is officially girl time," she declared as Jean headed into the bathroom with the items floating behind her.

"Unless ya all wanna watch Kitty wax my back?" Rogue asked with a smirk.

"I think I'll _pass_," Scott said, slightly disgusted.

"Oh, come on, Scott, it's only a little hair," Kitty teased.

"Actually, it's a lot a hair," Rogue corrected with a smile.

"Yeah, and you know it's-" Scott said as he slowly backed to the door.

"Girl time," Kurt supplied.

"Exactly, we wouldn't want to interrupt," Scott said as he placed his hand on Kurt's shoulder. Kitty giggled as she joined Jean in the bathroom.

"Besides, someone has to tell the Professor the good news," Kurt smiled. "See you later," he said as he waved at her.

"Later," Rogue said with a small smile as she watched them teleport out of the room.

"Kid, come find me when you up ta talking, alright?" Logan asked.

"I'm telling ya right now, it ain't gonna be any time today," Rogue said. He nodded.

"Feel better," Logan said sincerely as he headed for the door.

"Thanks," Rogue said as she watched him leave the room.

"Okay," Jean said as she exited the bathroom. "Everything's set up for you,"

"So, you go enjoy your, super relaxing, non-threatening, totally stress free shower. I lit candles," Kitty said bubbly.

"Lavender?" Rogue asked hopefully.

"Duh," Kitty smiled; Rogue couldn't help but laugh.

"Thanks," Rogue grinned before she stood up and entered the bathroom, ready to enjoy the next couple of hours of relaxation.

* * *

Charles Xavier sat alone outside of the ruins of his school. He had ordered Beast and Storm to go inside and see to the students. They had been left in the dark long enough. Charles could handle subduing Juggernaut alone now that the he had removed the mental blocks someone had foolishly constructed in Cain's mind. Although he was focused on the task of keeping Juggernaut from attempting to kill anyone else, there were a few questions in the back of his mind plaguing him with worriment.

_'Why was she still here?'_ he asked himself in anguish._ 'Rogue should have been with Sabertooth. Why hadn't she left, and why didn't she call for help?'_ he asked himself. The timing in which Magneto had arrived was too suspicious as far as Charles was concerned. But he couldn't ask Rogue for answers. _'Not today. Not this week, even.'_ His ward needed time to heal and he was prepared to give it to her. _'Assuming Magneto is__ willing to give her time__ as well,' _he thought to himself in fear. He had no idea when Magneto would stage his next abduction but Charles knew he could not allow it to be successful.

"How much more is there that I don't know?" he asked himself under his breath.

"An insurmountable amount," Charles heard Magneto say from behind him. He quickly turned to see Magneto holding Sabertooth over his shoulder. Charles entered Magneto's mind in the stealthiest way he could manage. His only purpose in doing so was to ensure that he would know whether Magneto answered his question honestly.

"Where is Rogue?" Charles demanded to know. Magneto opened his mouth to answer as Nightcrawler and Cyclops teleported near them.

"Professor, good news," Nightcrawler exclaimed.

"Yeah, Rogue's okay," Cyclops finished.

"She is still in your infirmary where I left her to recuperate," Magneto answered with a small grin before he turned away from them and towards the van. Charles could see that he was telling the truth and of course he trusted the words of his students.

"That is good to hear," Charles said as out of the corner of his eye he saw Magneto manipulate the metal left on the van. "Thank you both of the report. Would you two please give the news to Ororo and Hank?" he asked.

"Sure, Professor," Cyclops said before Nightcrawler teleported back inside.

"And once Rogue has fully recuperated, then what?" Charles asked, looking into the man's eyes.

"She and I are meeting tomorrow night for dinner to discuss the situation," Magneto answered, still refusing to return Charles' gaze.

"She will need more time than that to recover," Charles insisted. His eyes widened in shock as Magneto chuckled. "What precisely do you find so amusing, Magnus?" he asked riled.

"You clearly don't know the girl as well as you think you do," he said with a soft chuckle as they finally made eye contact. "Mark these words, in a few hours from now, Rogue is going to demand to speak with you privately, and given the trial by ordeal she has been forced to endure these past few week-"

"Because of you," Charles interrupted. He watched Magneto's eyes narrow in anger.

"Did I force her to search her past for answers? No," he answered strongly. "Did I force her to stay up half the night finishing pointless blueprints? No. Did I force her not to eat for over twenty four hours? Agai-"

"You been spying on all of us, haven't you? As the fragment?" he accused.

"Yes, Charles, I have," he answered dismissively. "As, I was saying, _Rogue_ is the one who choose to endure all of those trials of her own volition," he said strongly.

"Did she choose to be kidnapped, Magneto? Did she choose to become the object of your_ obsession_?" Charles asked.

"... I believe we were mutually ensnared by one another. This afternoon you asked Rogue how she feels while in my company. She did not tell you everything," he said. Once again, Charles psychically knew Magneto was telling the truth. Charles sat thoughtfully as he watched Magneto turn back to the metal.

_'Of course, there's more to their relationship. Rogue only just told me that Magneto's been blackmailing her. She did not tell me for how long or even why. I could surmise that she knew too much about Magneto's plans. That he-'_ he thought as he watched Magneto float into the air toward the two metal spheres he had formed.

"Magneto," Charles protested as he watched him place Sabertooth in one of the spheres.

"I do not have all night to stand here and address your inquires, Charles. Ask Anna," he ordered. "She'll be positively elated to speak with you about the subject given the freedom she has been given tonight to do so uninhibited," he said.

_'Tonight?' _he thought to himself; the way Magneto had stated it made it sound as through it would only be temporary. "Her _freedom_ should _never_ be in question," Charles said in disgust.

"Agreed," Magneto said darkly much to Charles' surprise. Magneto turned to face him. "Do you think I wanted to threaten Anna, to blackmail her?" he asked incredulously.

"To abduct her," Charles added. Magneto glanced away from him before smirking. In his mind he saw an image of Rogue. She was sitting in a metal chair. In front of her was a chess set. There was a large smirk on Rogue's face before she laughed. The sound of her laughter echoed though both of their minds. At least it had until he felt himself expelled out of Magneto's mind, the force of which knocked him to the ground causing his chair to fall on him.

_'Professor?'_ he heard a voice call out to him troubled.

_'I'm alright, Jean, nothing for you to concern yourself over,'_ he thought lying to the best of his ability.

"I thought I felt you searching," Magneto said as he saw Magnus step up to him. Charles felt hands on his shoulders pulling him up. "When are you going to learn that all your attempts to see into my mind will gain you nothing but a _migraine_?" he asked as Magneto placed him back in his wheelchair.

"How are you able to do that?" he asked in anguish.

"_Decades_ of practice, Charles," he said. Charles was taken by surprise as Magneto seat down in a chair next to him. It had not been there a few moments ago. "Nearly twice as much practice as you have time for," he said.

"You are not that much older than I am," he said.

"Is that what you still believe?" Magneto laughed. "I may not be as old as your Wolverine, but it's rather close. I'm seventy-five years old Charles. Although, I look to be the same age as you, don't I?" he asked with a smirk. Charles had first met Magneto in a hospital after he had lost the use of his legs. Magneto had been working as a volunteer. The two of them talked about the hypothetical existence of mutants powers; debating the morality of the use of such powers. Through those talks they had developed, what he thought, was a good friendship.

He knew that Magneto was older than him, even back then, but he didn't think the gap was that significant. Now he knew without a doubt that the man had mislead him. He shuttered to think what other lies Magneto had told him.

"What do you think that statement says about your relationship with Rogue? You're over four times her age," he said.

"Surely, you noticed the advance nature of cognitive ability? The way she is able to put two and two together faster than most of your students can think a single thought? Most of the time, you find yourself able to keep up in conversations with her only _if _you happen to know the subject matter before she does," he said.

"...Yes, of course, I've noticed," Charles said quietly.

"It's a _mental genetic advantage_," he said with a smirk. "Her words not mine," he said happily. "That game of chess you witnessed the two of us playing. It was first time she'd played against me. She _won_," he told Charles.

"What?" Charles asked in disbelief. "Rogue told me that the first time she'd ever played was four months ago," he muttered.

"It was one of the first game she'd ever played and yes, she won," Magneto stated. "That's a feat you've never been able to accomplish yourself," he taunted. It was the truth. He and Magneto had been playing for years. Out of respect for the game and their friendship he had never read his opponent's mind.

After Magneto had declared checkmate he always laughed softly and told him that was how one improved - by playing against those who were better than you. They usually reset the pieces and played again to similar results. Magneto never seemed to tire of winning. At the time he thought Magneto was being a good friend who was simply encouraging him to learn from his mistakes. Now he suspected he had only been feeding his own ego.

"How did Rogue win against a master strategist?" Charles asked.

"By being one herself," Magneto stated. "She didn't know the game well enough to beat me outright. So, she used other means to gain the advantage," he said.

"How?" he asked alarmed.

"She manipulated my emotions," he said with a smile. "She knew what to say, how to taunt me so that my anger would cloud my judgment. All in a ploy to distract me from planning my moves well enough to counter hers. At the time I was irritated beyond belief. In retrospect, it was the most brilliantly challenging game I'd ever played," he said with a smirk.

"And to answer the question I know is on the tip of your tongue Charles, yes, I was holding her captive at the time. We were in her bedroom, for hours on end while you weren't home. And both she and I enjoyed ourselves immensely. In many ways," he said with a chuckled.

"That's deranged, Magnus," he said.

"Charles, that naivety of yours lost its charm over a decade ago. And I honestly do not have time to debate morality with a hopeless idealist such as yourself," he said as he stood up. "I will see you tomorrow night Charles for the negotiations," he said.

"What kind of negotiations?" Charles said alarmed.

"For the truce," he answered.

"Truce?" he asked confused. Magneto sighed.

"Ask Anna," he ordered again. "She will have far more patience for your endless questioning than I will," he said.

"Magn-" Charles started to say.

"Save it for tomorrow, Charles," he said as he lowered himself into the sphere. "And I suggest you allow Rogue to do most of the arguing. She's far more skilled at it than you are. Especially when I am her opponent," he said before he settled into the sphere and sealed it. Charles watched them both fly away.

Every time he talked to either Rogue or Magneto he left with twice as many questions then he had started with.

_'They have only been speaking to one another for three months - less than three months. How much could I possibly not know?' _he asked himself. _'I don't care what Magnus said, I am not questioning her tonight. She has been through enough,'_ he thought with conviction._ 'Tomorrow, we'll talk. Only if she offers the conversation,' _he thought, satisfied with his decision.

* * *

Thank you for reading! I hope you all enjoyed it! If not tell me why? Feedback always helps!


	45. Chapter 44

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Forty-Four

Graydon Creed sat at his desk within the political office he was interning at. It was late and thankfully he was the only one left in the office. He could somewhat let his guard down.

_'I hate this job,' _he thought as he pulled a flyer off his desk. It gave the details to this month's meeting to discuss the 'mutant problem'. He fought the urge to crush the paper in his hands and throw it in the trash where it belonged. But he had an appearance to keep up – a façade; he pretended to agree with their ideas and philosophies and acted like he wanted to control the mutant population to protect humanity.

_'Friends of humanity,'_ he thought mockingly in his mind. _'More like friends of bigots who have nothing better to do with their lives than try to hurt my family,'_ he thought, annoyed. He took a deep breath as he placed the flyer into his top drawer.

"Your repartees need serious work, Graydon" he heard Emma say. He glanced up to the light of his life sauntering towards him. A smile instantly came to his face as he stood up. "I come bearing dinner," Emma said with a smile.

"Chinese?" he asked as he cleared off space on his desk, stacking papers and folders he would have to deal with before he left the office tonight.

"Of course," she grinned as she came up behind him and placed the bag on the table while leaning over to kiss his cheek.

"Em, I love you," he said with a grin as he turned to face her.

"Who wouldn't?" she asked playfully with a grin. He laughed as she moved in for a kiss.

"I am starving," he said. "Let's eat!" he gave her a quick peck on the lips. Graydon practically dropped his body onto his chair, while Emma gracefully perched herself on the wooden chair beside the desk. "This one is yours, I believe," he said as he examined the Chinese food container.

"Definitely, I can smell the shrimp from here," she said as she reached out for it. He handed it to her with a smile.

"And this one must be mine," he said as took out the other container. He saw Emma open hers as he grabbed the chop-sticks from the bottom of the bag, handing one pair to her.

"We should be doing this at home," Emma said.

_'Here we go again,'_ he thought with a smirk as he opened the little paper box..

"You've been working far too many hours this month. They treat you like a slave," she said in disgust before she took her first bite.

"I'm an intern. I am a slave," he said sadly. "Except, I have to buy my own food," he said before he took his first bite. She chuckled softly. "Not all of us get to find their dream job after one interview," he said with a smirk.

"What can I say? The principal _loved_ me," she said.

"With a little help," he teased between bites.

"The things you accuse me of," she exclaimed, pretending to be offended. He laughed. "Those children are _lucky_ to have teacher like me in the classroom," she said.

"Damn right they are," he smiled. "How'd the assembly go today?"

"_Fabulous_, my kids where most well behaved of all the seventh graders," she said.

"With a-"

"If you say 'with a little help again' I going to start to throwing shrimp at you," she warned. He laughed.

"Just try to get them in my mouth, kay, Em?" he asked before he opened his mouth as wide as he could. "Ahh," he sounded playfully as she laughed.

"I changed my mind. I'll keep my food, thanks very much," she said. He laughed softly. "And about this weekend, Graydon" her tone turned more serious.

"Yeah?" he asked.

"It turns out that Cordelia _is_ going to visit Christian at the asylum this weekend," she told him.

"Can we go? Do you want to?" Graydon asked.

"We can," she answered, "and yes I want to go see my brother. You don't have to come with me," she said.

"Em, am I allowed to go?" he asked._ 'Or is Magneto afraid the three of us might form some kind of resistance?'_ he asked mockingly.

"He hasn't said anything against it," she said. He made eye contact with her. "You going with me to see Christopher, not the the other thing," she clarified.

_'Pretty sure, neither of us would have memories if we tried something like that,'_ he thought.

_'I'd like to see someone_ try_ to break the metal defenses I've placed in both our minds. No one, not Blindspot, Mastermind, or either one of those whores he calls daughters, are going to erase a _single_ memory from our minds,' _she thought with conviction. He smiled at the thought, glad that she loved him strongly enough to protect him. His smile soon turned into a lamenting sigh. He wished he was able to protect himself against people like Magneto.

"Em, do you want me to go with you?" he asked.

"Yes, Graydon, I do," she said.

"Then I'll be there," he promised. "...I just wish it that easy from me to see my siblings," he said sadly.

"We're going to think of something," she said strongly. _'Magneto's threats won't deter us forever,' _she thought.

"They have for a nearly a month," he said frustrated. "We never should have gone back into the restaurant," he said for the countless time.

_'Graydon, do you know how many times we've had this conversation, now? The facts haven't changed and I love you too much to watch you continuously torture yourself like this,'_ she thought.

"Emma," he protested.

"No, I'm not having this conversation again. There is _nothing_ we could have done differently. We _are_ going to think of somethin-" Emma started to say before her cell phone rang._ 'Speak of the devil,'_ she thought as she pulled her phone out.

"What could Magneto possibly want at this hour?" he asked as they both quickly put their food on the desk. "Does he want to fuck Kurt now?" he asked as Emma stood up.

"Shh," she hushed as she walked a few feet away from him.

"Just wanted to let us know so I could nothing about that too?" he asked enraged.

"Graydon, please, calm down," she said. '_And keep those comments where they belong,'_ she thought to him as she opened the phone. "Sir?" she asked into the phone. He couldn't believe they were still expected to follow his orders. _'That bastard dislocated my shoulder when I disagreed with him,' _he thought in anger.

There was a long pause as Graydon watched Emma's eyes widened in shock. He fought the urge to get up and rip the phone out of her hands; throwing it against the wall. Instead he sat silently, fuming with anger at his ineffectualness.

"...Yes, I- I understand, sir," Emma said after a long moment and hung up the phone.

"What?" he asked.

"That sister of yours has some_ serious_ power over Magneto," she said shocked.

"Em, what the hell are you talking about?" he asked impatiently as she walked up to him.

"Graydon, he lifted our exile," she beamed.

"What?" he asked in disbelief as he stood up.

"We're allowed in _Bayville_ again," she smiled as she looped her arms around his neck. "We can contact your sister! Do you still want to get on that plane?" she asked.

"Hell yes," he exclaimed before he kissed her. They let go of one another to pack up their food.

Graydon's mind was reeling. He needed to buy tickets. He was going to see his sister. He had to call his boss. He could finally have a conversation with his little brother and introduce himself. He was probably going to be fired for leaving mid-week, but at this point he couldn't care less. He could talk to the X-Men, to Professor Xavier. Emma had told him that he was just as powerful as she was - maybe more so. How much clothing should he pack? He could finally help his sister in some way. Maybe together they could fight Magneto.

_'Why would Magneto let us go see her?'_ he asked confused. "I thought-" he started to say as he glanced up. Emma wasn't paying his concerns any attention at the moment. She was calling her boss, he realized.

"Yes, Barb _another _family emergency. This time it's Graydon's. His sister was in a car accident," she said. His eyes widened in fear. _'Graydon, relax, I'm lying,' _she thought quickly as she put her hand on his arm reassuringly. "Graydon's parents are out of the country they need us to go to New York to look after Anna Marie until they arrive," she said as he grabbed a piece of paper and pen. Emma's lie was as good as any.

"...No, I don't know how long that's going to take," Emma said as he wrote out the note. "... Listen, Barb, my boyfriend _needs_ me by his side as we deal with this emergency. So, yes I'm going. I'll find a sub and hire them myself for the day if you won't do it...," she said strongly. "...I'll call tomorrow night to give you an update," she said before she hung up the phone. "The nerve the women has," she commented under her breath as he hung the note on his boss' door. He walked back over to his desk and picked up the phone. He dialed his boss' number and quickly left a message saying the same thing.

He turned back to Emma once he was done. She had packed up their food and was now on the phone again arranging their tickets.

"Ready, Graydon?" she asked as they made eye contact. He'd ask her why Magneto had lifted their exile later. He nodded, picking up the bag before they rushed out of the room. "Yes, I need two tickets to New York..."

* * *

Rogue sat in the kitchen with her family finishing a late dinner and she felt fantastic. Kitty, Jean, and Ororo had helped her to get rid of the annoying byproducts of absorbing her father. Ororo had cut her hair back to shoulder length the first time she had absorbed Victor and had repeated the same process today as well. Once again Ororo had done an excellent done; she looked great.

Rogue had spent a good three hours relaxing with Jean, Kitty, Amara, and Tabitha. Kitty had painted her finger and toe nails as the five of them had just talked about mindless, pointless things. It was exactly what she needed. Dinner with her family had only added to her healing process.

Again, everyone had avoided any mention of Juggernaut and Magneto. There was tension in the air, of course, but she wasn't the only one feeling it. They all knew that tomorrow night she and the Professor would be meeting with Magneto. If she was being honest with herself, she was looking forward to talking to Max. Not only were they declaring a truce but she still had a coupon for a punch to his face to cash in.

_'I am _really_ looking forward to that,'_ she thought with a smirk. She allowed herself to indulge the thought for a second before pushing it back. With Juggernaut's powers still active the slight influence his psyche had on her active emotions was still present. She had to shy away from violent thoughts, at least until the mind residue faded.

_'Not to mention_, _freedom,'_ she thought to herself blissfully as she took her last bite of food. Currently, Magneto wasn't blackmailing or holding her captive. He had said as much before he left. That fact alone was lifting her spirit higher than she had felt in weeks. The relief and joy she had felt to have an honest conversation with the Professor was omnipresent for her now. It was as though a huge burden had been lifted from her shoulders. She hadn't told a lie in hours.

She felt free, loved, relaxed, recharged, and optimistic: ready to face whatever she needed to. She hadn't felt this good in over a year.

And to top it all off it was only nine in the evening, Rogue noted.

_'I have a loophole to exploit,'_ she thought happily as he brother reached for the plate in front of her. "Kurt, I can do that," she insisted.

"You just sit, sis" Kurt said.

"Yeah, we'll take care of this," Kitty said with a smile.

"Rogue," the Professor started to say as Rogue glanced up at him, "Sabertooth's powers might have kept you from obtaining any _visible_ scars but today's ordeal has still taken a heavy toll on you. This whole _week_ has been extremely stressful. Please, just relax," he ordered gently.

"Prof, I just relaxed for three hours. I feel much better now, _really._ Besides, we don't have a lot of time. You've never negotiated with Magneto before. I have a bunch of times now. I'd like to give ya some pointers. If we could talk privately?" she asked. He looked uncertain. "Unless, you're not up for talking tonight, I'd get it. We could do this tomorrow morning. Like you said today's been really stressful," she said.

"Thank you for your concern," he said with a small smile. "But no, it's not that," the Professor said.

"Okay, then what?" Rogue asked.

"Charles, is something wrong?" Ororo asked.

"I am asking everyone to be please remain claim despite what I am about to say, Rogue, you especially," he said.

"Okay," Rogue said uneasy.

"There's another telepath on the grounds," the Professor said as he closed his eyes.

_'Oh, fuck,' _she thought to herself.

"Who are they?" Scott asked.

"I'm not certain yet. This woman has very powerful metal defenses," the Professor said.

_'She? Could be Blindspot, or either of Mastermind's daughters. Fuck! What if Max changed his mind? Decided ta fuck the truce and just have everyone's memories erased instead,' _she thought panicked. She had had three hours to talk and she wasted every minute of it. "Fuck," she muttered as the Professor opened his eyes, making contact with hers. "Prof, I-" she started to say.

"Hey, is that them?" Kurt asked.

"I believe so," the Professor started to say as Rogue quickly glanced up at the monitors displaying the grounds and saw two people standing in front of the elevator, "yes."

"Graydon, Emma?" Rogue asked out loud in disbelief.

"Rogue, you know these people?" Ororo asked.

"Yeah, that's my brother and his girlfriend," she said. "Prof, give me a minute? I'm gonna try to find out why they're here," she told him.

"Go ahead," the Professor told her.

_'Emma?'_ Rogue called closing her eyes.

_'Rogue, are you alright?'_ Emma asked concerned.

_'Yeah, I'm okay, I guess. Unless y'all are here to erase memories…'_

_'What?'_ Emma exclaimed confused. '_No, no, we're here to see you, Rogue,' _she said._ 'Graydon's been worried sick. I'd explain but Graydon's wishes to tell you. May we come in?'_ she asked. Rogue let out a sigh.

_'Hold on,'_ Rogue thought to Emma. '_God_, please_, let her be telling the truth,' _she thought desperately.

_'I am,'_ Emma told Rogue as she took a deep breath as she opened her eyes. Everyone was staring at her.

"Okay," she said as she made eye contact with the Professor. "Here's what going on. That's my brother Graydon Creed and his girlfriend Emma Frost. I've known them both for years. There here 'cause they know about my situation with Magneto and they're worried about me. I know it's late but would it be alright if they came inside and we talked to them?" Rogue asked.

"There's more, isn't there?" the Professor asked.

"Yeah, there's more," Rogue told him with a sigh. The Professor was looking at her curiosity; waiting for her to continue. "That I'd be happy to discuss_ privately_," she said._ 'Prof, everyone is gonna freak out if I start talking about how Magneto's been blackmailing me.'_

"Very well," he said. "Hank, Ororo could you both please escort our guests down to sub-level seven?" he asked.

"Of course, Charles," Ororo said as Mr. McCoy nodded.

"Rogue, Logan and I will meet you there in a moment," he said before Ororo and Mr. McCoy left the room. "Scott, Jean, I'm leaving you two in charge of the students," he said.

"Yes, Professor," they said in unison.

"Is everything okay, Professor?" Bobby Drake asked.

"Everything is fine, Bobby. This is just quite an unexpected visit, especially given this afternoon's events. I assure you that there is nothing to worry about. Now, Scott and Jean will help you all clean up the dishes and then it'll be time to head to bed. You have school in the morning," the Professor said.

"Who can sleep?" Evan asked sarcastically. "When people are getting kidnapped, and going missing all the time," he said annoyed.

"Hey," Rogue said as she stood up and all eyes turned back to her. "I know that everything that's been going on with me and Magneto has affected a lot of people here. And I know I haven't said this yet so I'm saying it now. I'm sorry about all the stress and all the fear ya all have been feeling cause of me. I am so sorry," she said again. She could feel tears forming in her eyes. "I know that it doesn't change anything that's happened. I wish it could but it doesn't. But I am hoping that this truce between me and Magneto-"

"Between the _x-men_ and Magneto," the Professor said strongly. "This burden is no longer on your shoulders alone, Rogue. It never should have been," he said. She nodded with a smile as tears slid down her cheeks.

"I'm sorry," she said tearfully as Kitty pulled her into a hug. Rogue loosely wrapped her arms around her roommate. She still had Juggernaut's powers and didn't want to hurt Kitty.

"It's okay, Rogue," Kitty said softly as she squeezed her tightly.

"Yeah, you didn't _ask_ for some psycho to start kidnapping you, right girl?" Tabitha asked.

"No, I didn't," Rogue said with a small smile as she and Kitty stopped hugging. They smiled at each other as Kitty moved a few inches away from her.

"Did ya ask Juggernaut to beat ya up?" Sam asked.

"No- … Well, I did hit him with one of the van going eight miles per hour before he even knew I was out there. That only pissed him off. So, kinda... a little," Rogue said softly.

"You did what?" Bobby asked in disbelief although with a chorus of gasps.

"You are insane," Evan said.

"Yeah, and lucky to be _alive_," Rogue exclaimed. "So, don't ya all be getting any ideas from my bad example. If y'all see an incredibly dangerous mutant on the grounds- hell _anywhere_, you call for help. You do not do what I did," Rogue warned strongly.

"...Why _didn't_ you call for help?" Evan asked.

"Evan," Kitty exclaimed.

"No, Kitty, it's alright. It's a good question. That I have an answer too... for the Professor and everyone else once we get ta sub-level seven," Rogue said looking at the Professor again.

"Was Magneto somehow responsible?" the Professor asked.

"Yeah, but not in the way ya think. He didn't mean ta almost get me killed. Actually, that's why we're getting this truce. It's part of his apology to me," Rogue told him. The Professor nodded thoughtfully.

"If everyone would please excuse us," the Professor said after a moment.

"You kids heard the Professor finish cleaning up this mess up," Logan said taking charge and effectively ending the conversation. There was an echo of 'Yes, Mr. Logan,' the three of them walked towards the exit.

_'Wait, Kurt,' _she thought to herself as she turned back to see her brother and Kitty laughing with one another._ 'I guess I should make sure that he's gonna remember the conversation first before I introduce them to each other,'_ Rogue thought sadly as they exited the room. They walked in silence down the hall and into the elevator. The Professor pressed a button on the lift's controls and they all watched the lift's doors close.

"So, how's it Magneto's fault?" Logan asked annoyed his arms crossed over his chest.

"I'm afraid that question must wait a moment," the Professor said, only adding to Logan's irritated mood. "Rogue, you're frightened, I can tell, and that fear did not dissipate once you learned who was at our door. What exactly do you fear from your brother?" he asked.

"It ain't Gray I'm afraid of, Prof. It's _Emma_. They both work for Magneto," Rogue told him as she glanced down at him. He raised an eyebrow.

"Then what are they doing here?" Logan asked.

"Emma said they've been worried about me. That they wanna talk. But the last time I saw them they left me alone with Magneto and they both knew he was holding me captive. So, I don't fucking know," she exclaimed.

"When the hell wa-" Logan started to yell.

"Logan, please," The Professor said, "Shouting is not going to help matters any," he told him.

"Then just explain what's going on already," Logan said frustrated with a low growl.

"I am still learning myself. I cannot explain what I do not know," the Professor said.

"Logan, I'm sorr-" Rogue started to say as the lift's doors opened up to sub-level seven.

"Rogue," Graydon exclaimed happily before he ran up to her and pulled her into a hug. "I am so sorry. You have no idea. I'm sorry. I never should have gone back into the restaurant-" Graydon started to say as Rogue gently pulled away from him. She stared up at him studying his face.

_'Is this an act?'_ she asked herself as they walked out of the elevator.

"What choice did we have?" Emma asked skeptically as Rogue glanced at her. "The three of us against Magneto? Rogue, you were already trapped in a car, terrified out of your mind-"

"What? When was this?" Logan asked enraged.

"February twenty six," Rogue answered softly as she walked over to a chair and sat down. All of a sudden she was tired again – no, make that exhausted. She indulged her urge to close her eyes as she leaned her head back against the chair's head rest.

"Rogue, are you alright?" Ororo asked.

"No, not even a little bit..." she said with a sigh. _'Max, you were ordered to tell me the truth and now we both know why... So?'_ she asked him.

_'It is as Ms. Frost reported,' _the fragment of Magneto said softly. _'I threatened your brother into submission after he disapproved of my treatment of you,' _he told her calmly. Her fists balled at her sides; shaking in anger.

_'Would you like to see for yourself?'_ the fragment asked. She paused for a moment. She knew he had said something but what it was hadn't fully heard him. She took a moment to replay what he asked. She let out a short laugh.

"...Did you really just ask me that? _Seriously_?" she asked annoyed. "Do I _want_ to watch, from your point of view, you _enjoying_ threatening my brother for giving a shit about me?" she asked incredulously. "Not right now, no. Maybe later," she yelled at him annoyed as her hand clenched onto the arm of the chair; crushing it in her grasp.

"Whoa," she heard Graydon exclaim.

"Rogue?" the Professor asked concerned.

"Give me a minute, Prof," she growled as she closed her eyes. Taking deep breaths she tried to calm the rage she was feeling. In the background she could hear that the others were talking to one another. She chose to block out whatever they were saying, feeling like she could lose control at the slightest comment about her behavior.

_'...This isn't working, Fucking Juggernaut,'_ she thought to herself. _'Fucking Magneto, god, I just wanna hurt him... I can settle for yelling,'_ she thought to herself before her eyes snapped open. She reached out and grabbed the phone on the table.

"Rogue, who are you calling?" the Professor asked as she brought the phone to her ear. Her eyes widened for a moment as she saw the elevator doors open.

_'Who the hell would be coming-' _she started to ask as she watched the inside of the elevator blankly. Her eyes narrowed in anger as she saw no one was in it.

_'So, stalking's still fucking okay, by his standards?'_ she thought enraged as she put the phone back down. "Relax," she yelled. "I changed my mind. I ain't calling anyone," she said as she stood up and quickly shed her gloves making eye contact with the Professor. His eyes widened in fear as she put her hand in her pockets. "But I'm too angry to talk right now. I'm gonna go get some water..." she said and turned. _'And punch someone,' _she thought to both the Professor as she started to walk towards the elevator.

_'Stop, please,_' the Professor thought as Graydon called out

"Rogue?"

"Let her go, Graydon," Emma started to say as the Professor projected at her.

_'This is too dangerous,'_ he warned as the doors to the elevator started to close much faster than they should.

"God damn it," Rogue yelled out as she ran up to the elevator and struck her arm in the door's path. It stopped where it was, before touching her arm. "Is this what you call an apology? Stalking me again, you fucking jackass," she screamed as forced the door open; the sound of the metal slamming in its frame echoed throughout the hallway.

"Rogue," Beast called out as both he, Ororo and Logan ran up behind her. She heard Logan sniffing behind her as she got into the elevator. Kicking at the air, she didn't hit anything.

"I smell him," Logan reported, "but it could be from before," he added.

"Rogue, are you certain-" the Professor started to ask as she marched back to the table and grabbed the phone.

"I know what I saw," Rogue declared strongly as she dialed his cell phone number.

"Ann-" Magneto started to say, his voice coming from above her.

"Magneto, where are you?" the Professor asked in anger as Rogue jumped up onto the table and then in to the air, aiming a kick where she had heard his voice. She hit thin air again. As her body started to fall towards the floor she felt a hand take hold of hers.

"Right, here Charles," Magneto answered as his body became visible to her. The gasps she heard told her that everyone else could see him as well. She ripped her hand out of his the second she felt her feet touch the ground.

"Don't you have better things to do?" Rogue screamed into his face. Her hand formed into fists once again.

"Anna, please try to calm down. This is _Juggernaut's_ reaction to rage, not yours," Magneto said.

"You think I don't know that! I figured that out _months_ before you started helping me with my powers," she shouted at him as he lifted his hands. She was more than familiar with his mannerism by now. "Don't you dare fucking touch me," Rogue screamed.

"My apologies, Anna, it's a reflex," he explained as he lowered his hands. "I see you in pain and I can't help but wish to comfort you," he said calmly.

"I know," Rogue said softly as she turned away from him. "You need to leave, _now_," Rogue told him. "I meant what I said before. I'm tired of fighting. I _want_ this truce but all I'm seeing is red right now. So, you need to go. If I manage to absorb you right now I might-" she started to say.

"Kill me?" Magneto asked. "I'm touched you care enough to give a warning," he said with a small smile as he used his powers to move two of the chairs out from under the table.

"Yeah, to you and anyone else who gets in my way," she said as the chairs moved to face one another. "You know how fucking _homicidal_ you get when you're angry," she said.

"Anna, you have far more control than you give yourself credit for," he said as she rolled her eyes "_Honestly_," Magneto added as he took a seat in one of the chairs.

"Magneto, you can't just come in here and-" Logan started to say enraged. His voice was muted to her as a magnetic shield enclosed over Rogue, Magneto and the two chairs. Her eyes narrowed in anger.

"Holding me captive again, Max?" she asked, beyond annoyed.

"Hardly, ask me to lower the shield and I will do so immediately. Giv-"

"One minute-" she told him. '_Prof,'_ she called out.

_'Yes?'_ he asked; his voice laced with concern.

_'I'm fine. I will handle this. Just try to keep everyone calm,' she_ said before she turned her attention back to Magneto. "You were saying?" she asked dryly.

"That, given your rage I thought it best-" he started to say.

"Cut the bullshit, Max. It's_ me_. You wanna talk ta me alone without them making comments or asking questions," she said. He smirked.

"I personally love it, those moments, when you and I both want the exact same thing," he said. She sighed as she closed her eyes, wishing for another moment to calm herself. That wasn't what she wanted. She was prepared to talk to the Professor.

_'Although you truly didn't wish too. You would have asked Emma and Graydon to inform your guardian of the events of t-'_ the fragment started to say.

_'Hell, fucking, no,'_ she thought annoyed. "Max, order your counterpart to shut the fuck up," she commanded.

"You heard her, my friend. You have my apologies, but in our current state of ceasefire, I'm afraid, you may only speak when spoken to," Magneto said. She let out a sigh of relief as she felt the fragment slip into the back of her mind. Although the slight sting of envy and anger the fragment felt did not go unnoticed by her. "Please have a seat?" he asked.

"Who says I_ wanna_ talk to you?" she asked as she crossed her arms over her chest. He stared at her for a moment.

"You could sit and talk with me about your emotional grievances. I will listen intently as I always do. _Or_ you can return to _them_ and deal with_ their_ insecurities," he said dryly as both of them glanced outside the magnetic dome separating them from the others. They all looked panicked, worried. And if she was being honest with herself she really didn't feel like reliving the past three months just yet.

She could always just go to bed, explain that she would tell them everything tomorrow. But still she would have to work with the Professor to reassure the others that everything was actually okay. An exhausting task considering they were both lying. This was also assuming she could get Magneto to leave the institute. He had only promised to remove the shield, not depart.

"You're an asshole," Rogue huffed as she sat down.

* * *

"Everyone, please," Charles Xavier said again as he attempted to keep the others in the room calm. He wasn't doing a very good job, he noticed as Storm created a lighten bolt. "Ororo, don't," he exclaimed. "Lightning and electrically are too similar in nature. Magneto is capable of turning that ability against you," he said as she stopped short.

"Then what do we do Charles?" Beast asked.

"For the moment, nothing," Charles said.

"What?" Wolverine exclaimed. Charles took a deep breath as he glanced at the others in the room. Emma Frost was standing between Graydon Creed and the Magnetic dome. The way they looked at each other indicated that they were holding a telepathic conversation. Storm had withdrawn the lightning bolt. Beast was standing, waiting for orders. Wolverine looked like an angry animal in a cage, waiting for the door to open allowing him to maim the poor sucker on the other side.

"I understand you are all worried about Rogue and disturbed by Magneto's presence here within these walls. I can assure you all, I am as well. However, Rogue has informed me, not a moment ago, that _she is fine," _he said.

"Magneto's got her trapped, 'course she's gonna say that," Wolverine seethed.

"You know that when I am reading an individual's mind I can tell the emotional state they are in. Rogue was_ angry_, not frightened. She doesn't believe she is in any danger, and I believe her. From the looks of things it appears the two of them are simply going to talk," he said as he saw Rogue sit down.

"And we're just gonna let them?" Wolverine raged. "Magneto spies on us, then comes in here, like he owns the place, and we're just going to sit back and let him have the run our home!"

"No, of course, not," Charles stated. "Logan don't-" Charles tried to warn as Wolverine ran up to the shield his claws out, fully intent on hitting it. Thankfully, the shield fell down before he was able to make contact. His claws swung at thin air as Magneto used his powers to move Rogue's and his seat out of range of the attack.

"He would have healed," Magneto said dryly to Rogue as Wolverine stumbled towards the wall.

"Stop saying shit that makes me wanna punch you," Rogue ordered with narrowed eyes as she stood up. "Logan, I'm fine, _really,_" Rogue insisted as she stood up. Charles watched her face Wolverine. "Magneto I am are talking about some stuff that I don't want to say in front of y'all. He is not holding me captive- not now, not ever again," she said strongly. Charles watched Rogue and Magneto's eyes meet as she said it. Magneto gave Rogue a small nod before she turned back to Wolverine.

"I'm fine," Rogue stressed again. "Look, I know that seeing me in a shield like that with him is scary as all hell and I'm sorry about that. Magneto and I can go outside if that would make y'all feel any better," she offered.

"It wouldn't," Charles said at once.

"Okay, then," Rogue said with a nod. "We'll just be over here, talking. Prof, if you could tell them everything you learned today?"

"Of course," Charles said with a nod.

"Emma, Graydon, if you two could full them in about the emergence?" she asked. Charles saw fear in Emma Frost's expression.

"Rogue we can't-" Emma started to say. Rogue let out annoyed sigh as she turned to look at Magneto again..

"Give them permission," Rogue commanded. Charles' eyes widened in fear. Did she honestly expect to follow an order like that?

"Anna-" he started to protest.

"I know more about what went on that week than both of them put together and I slept through it!" she yelled causing Charles eyes to widen in fear.

_'What did that mean, she slept through it?' _

"Now, either they can tell them what they know _tonight_. Or I will tell Prof, _everything_ tomorrow. Your choice," Rogue finished bitterly. Charles watched Rogue and Magneto hold the others gaze for a long moment.

"...You have permission," Magneto said dryly. "But keep the details to the minimum," he added as Charles watch him move the chair Rogue had been sitting.

"Yes, sir," Emma Frost said. Charles watched Emma lightly elbow Graydon Creed in the stomach.

"Yes, sir," Graydon mumbled under his breath angry.

"This apology is getting more irritating by the moment," Magneto uttered.

"Eric over the past few months you have put me through hell. You have kidnapped, threaten, blackmailed, lied, manipulated me into whatever position worked best for you any fucking day of the week. You know what was_ easy_, nonirritating? All the times you said 'I'm so sorry, Anna. I never meant to cause you such harm," Rogue said as Magneto's eyes narrowed dangerously. Charles was tempted to ask Rogue to stop, fearing she was pushing his patience too far. "And then you continued doing whatever the fuck you wanted with me anyway."

"Is there a point to this rant?" Magneto asked dryly.

"You love me," Rogue said strongly much to Charles' surprise. Charles heard gasps behind him. "I looked. I saw when you first realized it and I _felt_ it from your point of view and_ still_ you've been able to put me through what ya have," she said disgusted.

"What happened today with Juggernaut and the van was an accident," Magneto stressed.

"Wait, Rogue really was in a car accident?" Graydon Creed asked quietly confused.

"I know that," Rogue said seeming to not have heard her brother's question. "I get that now you're atoning for all of it, and I appreciate that-"

"But?" Magneto asked interrupting her. "There's always some stipulation you expect me to play along with after you _appreciate_ something I've done for you," he said as Rogue's eyes narrowed in anger.

"That's 'cause every time you do one decent thing there are five more lies to uncover, Er-"

"Anna, just call me Max," he sighed. "I don't care if they know my real name," Magneto said.

_'The first sentence he ever said to me was a lie,'_ Charles realized in shock and anger.

"So?" Magneto asked Rogue calling Charles attention back to the conversation.

"Fine, I won't start listing stipulations until we met for the truce-" Rogue said her arms crossed over her chest.

"That is not what I meant. I merely wanted you to be aware I've noticed a pattern in arguing style," he said.

"I also say, fuck, a lot and I use_ verbs,_" Rogue said condescendingly. Magneto stared at her blankly. "Ya wanna point out those details too, captain obvious?" she asked annoyed. Magneto placed his hand over his mouth for a moment.

"Would you, please, sit down so I can put the shield up already?" Magneto said gesturing towards the seat.

"Fine, but if ya stopped being a lying, manipulative, jackass ya wouldn't have anything to apologize for," Rogue told him with a smirk. "And-" Rogue started to say before she stated something in German. Charles was shocked as he heard Magneto chuckle and replied in German. Rogue laughed in response as she sat down.

"But, seriously, Max, if this apology was _convenient _for you, it wouldn't mean a god damn thing," Rogue told him.

"I know," Magneto said gazing into Rogue's eyes a moment before the magnetic shield reformed around them. Leaving Charles baffled to discuss the past few weeks with two of Magneto's subordinates.

* * *

Okay, it's voting time! Now, remember way back in chapter 26-28 when I had trouble figuring out how to explain what was going to happen during the emergence? I brushed over a lot of details, not explaining who did what, etc. However, I do have it all typed out. Now, here's the thing, if I was ever going to explain within the fic who did what NOW would be that time.

**So, here's the vote:**

**Yay**: have Emma and Graydon explain to the Professor and the others who was responsible for what during the emergence. Yay, you get to find out the details of Rogue's and Magneto's plan! Or,

**Nay**: Just get back to Rogue and Magneto's talk and forget the details of the emergence!

Once again, I don't want to spend a lot of time writing up something people may not want to read and might not enjoy. That would be a waste of everyone's time so... It's all up to you! Please vote! You guys have six days to response! Thank you in advance to those for you who take the time to give me some feedback! It's always appreciated! ^.^

Oh, here's a fun question; **does anyone have any thoughts on what Rogue said in German to make Magneto laugh and his response? **I've already got an answer in my head but if anyone comes up with something funnier than mine I will SO use it instead!

Thank you for reading! Please vote! :)

…...


	46. Chapter 45

Hey everyone! Sorry, it took me so long to update! But I just got a second job so I spent a lot of time working now! Why do I have to pay bills? Ah XP. I'll getting used to my new workload but once that happens I'll get into rhythm and updating will happen more frequently. Thanks for reading and thank you to everyone for voting! It was yes! So, you guys get to hear more details about the emergence!

Please enjoy!

* * *

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Forty-Five

"So?" Rogue heard Max ask her as she glanced down at him.

"Fine, I won't start listing stipulations until we met for the truce-" Rogue said as she crossed her arms over her chest.

"That is not what I meant. I merely wanted you to be aware I've noticed a pattern in arguing style," he said.

"I also say, fuck, a lot and I use_ verbs,_" Rogue said condescendingly. Magneto stared up at her; his face emotionless. But in his eyes she saw amusement. "Ya wanna point out those details too, captain obvious?" she asked pretending to be annoyed. Magneto placed his hand over his mouth for a moment. She could tell he was trying not to smirk.

"Would you, please, sit down so I can put the shield up already?" Magneto said gesturing towards the seat.

"Fine," she huffed assumed, "but if ya stopped being a lying, manipulative, jackass ya wouldn't have anything to apologize for," Rogue told him with a smirk. "And-" she said in English before she switched to speaking German, "If you weren't such an insufferable bastard we would probably have sex more often," she told him in German. She didn't want anyone else in the room to judge her for the comment. Max chuckled loudly.

"You are implying that you would you like to have-" Max started to reply in German before Rogue nodded slightly while smirking. "Then we're going to have to do something about my bastard like tendencies, it seems, because I refuse to get in my own way when it comes to _that_," he said jokingly. Rogue laughed in response as she sat down.

"...But, seriously, Max," she said as she gazed into his eyes, "if this apology was _convenient _for you, it wouldn't mean a god damn thing," Rogue told him in English.

"I know," Max said seriously. She let out a sigh of relief as she saw the dome reappear over them. She didn't even feel like yelling at him anymore. Sure, there were topics she could bring up to get herself started but she wasn't in the mood any longer. She felt relaxed, safe, in control and a little aroused. Not that she had any intention of acting on her desire to touch him; not here.

She glanced outside of it for a moment and instantly wished she hadn't. Everyone was staring at her. The Professor looked confused and hurt. Logan and Graydon both looked angry and disgusted. She quickly turned back towards Magneto but even as she turned her face she could feel their glares.

"Max, could you make it so they can't see us?" Rogue asked.

"Yes," he answered with a raised eyebrow as he did what she asked.

"Thanks," she said as she leaned back in her chair. She closed her eyes as she took another deep breath.

"Are you feeling alright, Anna?" he asked concerned.

"Yeah, I'm fine," she sighed. "I don't wanna be stared at," she said.

"Should I close my eyes, then?" Max asked lightheartedly. She let out a soft laugh as she opened her eyes.

"No, I don't mind ya looking at me... as long as I know you're there," she added as she glanced around.

"Is there something you want?" he asked; ignoring her second statement.

"Nothing important. I just wish I could put my feet up on something," she told him. He surprised her as moved forward a few inches. "What are you-" she started to ask as he reached down, took her feet in his hands and placed them on his lap.

"Better?" he asked as their eyes met.

"Yeah," she said with a slight smile. He smiled at her as he started to massage her foot. She watched him study her face. No doubt searching for some sign of approval. She closed her eyes and let her body go limp against the chair. He chuckled. "...I'm still mad at you," she muttered.

"That hardly means you cannot take solace in my company."

"...I know," she muttered, utterly content in his company. She let out a blissful moan as Max applied more pressure to his massage. "Ah, fuck-" she exclaimed; the caress had hurt in just the right way to bring a flush of color to her face and quicken her breath. _'I can't do this here, not with-' _she thought as he paused his massage.

* * *

"Do you wish for me to stop?" Magneto asked.

"No, I really,_ really_, don't. That feels amazing," Rogue said. That was more than enough of an invitation for him. He stared into her eyes as he resumed his massage. The heated gaze that meet his was intoxicating. If they were in a bedroom he would already be trying to remove her shirt. But the situation called for a little more subtlety. "But they're out there," she said desperately as he watched her moved her pelvis in time with his massage.

"And we are in here,_ away_ from them. Out of their sight as _you_ requested, my girl. Let's not think of them at this moment, Anna," he said coaxingly as he slowly moved his hands a few inches further up her leg; her eyes closing. His advances tonight had to be slow. Each touch so gently as though asking for permission to continue. No caress could be a surprise, no movement too quick; or else her natural reaction, along with Juggernaut's strength, could severely injure him.

"Give yourself just a few minutes, Anna. God knows after all you've endured in the name of defending those you love that you, my love, desire five minutes of unbridled passion. A reward of sorts," he uttered as he hands slid up to his her things; his upper body leaning over her legs to reach forward. He considered, for a moment, placing her feet on the ground, but decided against it.

As they were now, if Anna didn't wish for him to touch her she had the choice to kick him. She wouldn't, he was fairly sure, but he knew she would appreciate his vulnerability and the advantage she had in this position.

Her legs were pressed tightly together as he kissed the tops of both her kneecaps. The cotton on his lips wasn't unpleasant but he wished he was kissing her skin, nonetheless. Her body was shaking slightly now as his thumbs brushed against her inner thighs. Slowly he slid his thumbs further and further up her thighs; causing her to moan loudly as he finally brushed up against her groin. He glanced up, her head was thrown back against the chair's headrest. His eyes widened with surprise as he saw tears running down her face.

"Anna?" he asked concerns. Her eye fluttered open and met his. She was clearly upset. "What's wrong?" he asked as he sat up. She surprised him when she stood up and sat on his lap; her legs draped across his. He cupped her face as she rested her head against his chest. "It's not something I did, then?" he asked.

"No," she sighed softly. "You're just being you, Max, I don't blame ya for that. I- It's just," she started to say as she picked up her head and gazed into his eyes. "Half my family is in the same room as us," she exclaimed. "And as much as I wanna do this with you; I won't. Not with them right there," she told him as she closed her eyes. He watched her take deep breaths.

"We could go elsewhere," he offered gently. She shook her head no.

"Not tonight," she told him as she gazed up at him. "There's way too much going on. You know that," she said slightly annoyed..

"Yes, I do," he sighed. "Anna-" he started to say.

"Do we have ta talk, Max?" she asked taking him by surprise. "I know we have a lot of stuff to talk about and we'll get around to it. But right now could we just- could ya just hold me for while? No talking? Could we just have a quiet moment?" she asked. She sounded tired.

"Of course, we can, my love" he said tenderly as he brushed some of her hair behind her ear. He kissed the top of her head. She sighed blissfully as he watched her closed her eyes. "Of course, we can," he repeated as he held her too him tightly.

* * *

_'Like, I said,' _Emma started to say with a smirk once the magnetic dome reappeared, _'your sister has some serious power over Magneto.'_ Graydon could feel the four X-men's eyes on them as he glanced at the dome. His eyes widened as the dome started to crackle with magnetic energy; making it impossible to see inside. He really would feel better if he could just see Rogue. But once again Magneto was keeping her from view.

"It's still demented," Graydon said bitterly as he turned to face Emma. "And I really, _really_, don't like it," he said as they made eye contact.

"No one's expecting you to," Emma said gently as she placed a hand on his arm. "She's your baby sister you're not going to like _anyone_ she dates," she said with a small smile.

"Em, he's not some kid asking her to _prom_. He's a dirty old man doing god knows what to her every time he gets her alone," Graydon said as Wolverine growled.

"And how many times has that been?" Wolverine asked.

"We don't know exactly," Emma answered. _'And what if she likes god knows what?'_ Emma asked.

"Em," Graydon started to protest as Wolverine growled in the background.

_'During that whole time Magneto was pretending to be telepathic I was _monitoring_ their conversation. Rogue was having _fun_,'_ she stressed._ 'She likes him and the way he makes her feel. I know you don't want to hear this, but from what I've been forced to gleam she _enjoys_ their sexual relationship as long as it's on equal terms. A month ago my fear was that he was forcing her into doing things she didn't want to,' _Emma thought.

_'He ripped her shirt off of her and promised her they were going to have sex sometime that night no matter her opinion. What else was I supposed to think?'_ Emma thought incredulously. _'But after watching that exchange? Graydon if anything she's the one taking advantage. Maybe it's mutual?'_ she finished.

_'You really think so?' _Graydon asked.

_'Have you ever seen anyone talk to him the way she does?'_

_'No,'_ Graydon said shaking his head.

_'Neither have I. You said yourself she called him an asshole to his face and he laughed. We both saw that. If anyone can handle Magneto, I think it's Rogue,'_ she said.

"She shouldn't have to handle anything," Graydon argued.

"But what if she wants to?" Emma asked. "Are you going to tell her she's not allowed to be with him. Are you going to tell _Magneto_ that?" she asked wide. Graydon didn't say anything. "If it's mutual then what can do? It certainly looks that way, doesn't it? They were just laughing together. That's not the first time we've seen that. I have more times than I can count. But we _can_ ask her later," Emma offered as Graydon sighed.

"When ever the two of you are ready?" Charles Xavier asked guardedly.

"Just give us a moment," Emma said not bothering to look over at him. _'Graydon, we don't have the power to change anything between them. And we don't even know if Rogue wants us to or not. All we can do if offer the support Magneto will allow and get back to our own lives,' _she stressed "What else can we do?" Emma asked with a shrug. _'Defect,'_ she thought while rolling her eyes. _'to the losing side? __To Xavier's? We've both seen how inaff-'_

_'I know, I know,' _Graydon thought quickly. He had heard her rant about Charles Xavier's institute one too many times.

_'I know you, Graydon. You may not agree with Magneto's relationship with Rogue but you do believe in his cause. _Our_ cause. A better future for the next generation of mutants. A future where our kind can't __be hunted down and killed because of a gene they inherited at birth.' _

_'But why do have to work for _him_?'_ he said annoyed; although he already knew the answer.

_'Who else is there?'_ she asked. _'What could we accomplish on our own? We work for Magneto because he's the one with the resources, the plan-"_

_'We don't even know how many of us there are following his orders,' _Graydon thought.

'Exactly! W_e also don't know who_ _else he has within the government. Rogue made it sound like dozens when she was talking to Magneto, but who know? Graydon, we have no way of making contact with them. Even if we did, we don't know if they would accept our help without Magneto's approval. In the event they did we would still be fighting Magneto's war, only we would even more in the dark than we already are! As much as I hate to admit it, if we hope to be useful in this fight we need Magneto's leadership,' _she thought as he let out a sigh. He hated to admit it too, but it was the truth.

"I know," he sighed.

"Any day now," Wolverine growled. Both Graydon and Emma turned towards the table behind them. The X-Men were sitting, most of them, waiting patiently for them to be come join them.

"Sorry," Graydon said as he pulled away from Emma.

_'We have nothing to apologize for,' _Emma thought to him as they walked up to the table.

_'I'm being polite,'_ Graydon told her as they sat down next to each other.

* * *

Charles Xavier watched Emma Frost's mouth begin to open.

"Before you begin, Miss Frost, do either of you know how long he has been blackmailing her for?" Charles Xavier asked. Emma Frost and Graydon Creed glanced at each other again.

"Since February sixteenth," Graydon Creed answered after a moment.

"That long?" Wolverine exclaimed.

"Please tell us everything you know about what happened between them that day," Charles said as he tried to ignore Wolverine's outbursts and stay out of the man's mind. He always found it more difficult to keep out of other minds when their emotions were running high. The large amount of fear, and confusion coming from his staff was not helping his situation any.

The only person who seemed completely relaxed at the moment was, ironically, Rogue. He suspected that Magneto was as well, but had chosen not to invade his mind again today. He still had a slight headache from the expelling this afternoon.

"It's not much," Emma Frost said. Charles saw Graydon staring at her incredulously. They were clearly talking telepathically again; from their facial expressions it appeared they were arguing. "Alright fine," Emma Frost exclaimed after a moment. "Magneto was holding Rogue captive within the institute throughout most of the day. He wouldn't leave until she agreed to not tell anyone he had been there. That's when it started. When Magneto left I was ordered to leave the institute as well. I don't know what happened between them after that," Emma Frost said.

"What were they doing all day?" Charles asked.

"They talked, _a lot_. They played chess, ate together, talked more," she said, seemingly bored.

"When did you see her next? Was she with Magneto?" Charles asked.

"It was a week," Emma Frost said.

"Exactly a week?" Charles asked.

"Yeah," Graydon Creed said. "I found out that Magneto was trying to recruit Rogue. So, I asked to talk to her. I wasn't allowed to until the twenty-third. We were supposed to stay with her a few hours but then Magneto showed up, like, fifteen minutes after we left him," he said annoyed. "I didn't have time to really talk to her about anything. He took Rogue from us and I didn't see her again until that Monday at the restaurant," Graydon said.

"What happened at the restaurant?" Ororo asked.

"I-" Graydon Creed started to say.

"We should get to our orders. If Magneto comes into this conversation and we hadn't even started-" Emma Frost started to say.

"If you two hadn't spent so much time talking to yourselves we would've gotten to this already," Wolverine said. Charles watched Emma Frosts eyes narrow.

"I understand," Charles said. He had many questions._ 'It shouldn't matter in which order they're answered,'_ he told himself.

"These are the few details we know about the emergence," Emma Frost started to say. "Apparently, according to Rogue, there's more to know. But this is what _we_ know. On February twenty-eighth by ten-thirty-pm there were five teams who were to be in place within Bayville to ensure the emergence went exactly as planned. The first consisted of Mastermind and his two daughters-"

"Their names?" Hank McCoy asked.

"Magneto ordered us to keep the details to the minimum. I believe the real names of some of his most powerful telepaths is a detail he would prefer us not to tell," Emma told him. "Team one was stationed in Trask's underground fortress. Forcing Trask to believe that he was leading of a small army and has the means to construct several sentinels."

"In really Trask had only ten soldiers under his command and only enough parts to build two sentinels," Graydon said with a smirk.

"The second team consisted of Blindspot and Shan. They were holding Tabitha Smith and...," Emma paused for a moment. Graydon Creed and she looked at one another once again.

"And?" Beast asked.

"... And, you," Emma Frost said as she made eye contact with him, "Charles Xavier, captive at the Brotherhood manor," she said as his eyes widened in fear.

"Mystique didn't take me captive? Magneto did?" he asked confused.

"Technically they both did," Graydon Creed said. "Mystique was the one to take you captive but Magneto was holding her captive at the time. So, she was only allowed to take you prisoner because Magneto allowed it. And you just weren't moved to the Juggernaut's cell until the day of the emergence."

"Mystique was being controlled by telepaths on our side for the majority of the time," Emma Frost said.

"How do you people live with yourselves?" Wolverine asked as Graydon Creed glanced down at his hands. The boy was ashamed of his actions, that much was clear.

"You're Rogue's sister, correct? That must mean that Mystique is your mother?" Hank asked.

"Yeah," Graydon Creed muttered.

"What kind of person holds their own _mother_ prisoner?" Wolverine asked in disgust.

"We here as a favor to Graydon's sister, that's all," Emma Frost said outraged. "Aside from our orders we don't have to-"

"I didn't want to," Graydon Creed screamed out in protest; unwilling to stay silent. "Mom was already a captive when we got here, so was Rogue. I had no say in that. And what the hell could _I_ do against Magneto?" he asked.

"That depends. What are your powers, Mr. Creed?" Charles asked.

"I don't have any," Graydon said bitterly much to his surprise. "I'm powerless. What the fuck could I do?" he asked but didn't give anyone time to answer. "When I found out what Magneto was doing with Rogue I tried to go talk to him. Do you know what happened? I just wanted to talk to him about it and fucking Shan Mahn takes control over my mind, paralyzing me. I couldn't talk, I couldn't move. I couldn't do anything and all I tired to do was knock on his office's door," he said before he let a groan of frustration.

"I can't free people who Mahn controls," Emma Frost explained; Charles saw anger behind her eyes.

"And even if I could we were outnumbered. Cordelia and Besty would have sided with us."

"So would my dad if he knew," Graydon said. "But none of them were there at the restaurant. It was just me, Emma, and Rogue," he explained.

"I have a feeling that was not accidence," Charles said as Graydon Creed nodded.

"Nor do we. If we had started a fight Rogue would have been protected. Magneto would have seen to that but Graydon's safety is not his concern. If anything had happened to him because of a fight I foolishly might have started-" Emma Frost started to say.

"Of course," Charles said with a nod.

"I explained as much to Rogue. She knew why we had to follow Magneto's orders," she said.

"Which were?" Charles asked.

"I took Rogue out to our car and wait for further instructions. I did what I was told for Graydon's sake," Emma said with conviction as Graydon Creed took her hand in his. Charles watch them kiss.

"I love you too, Em. I'm sorry I not-"

"Graydon, you can't help that the gene shipped a generation. That's not your fault and it's nothing to apologize for," Emma said strongly.

"It certainly is not, Mr. Creed," Charles agreed.

"...May I ask what else happened that night?" Hank McCoy asked. Charles watched Graydon Creed's eyes narrow once again.

"I had to listen to Magneto's lecture about why fucking him would make Rogue a better a person," Graydon Creed said in anger. Wolverine growled at the comment.

"That's not how he put it," Emma Frost reminded him delicately.

"It's what he implied," Graydon snapped. "I didn't believe it for a second and once he realized that he started to make threats. He had plans for Rogue. He wanted to teach her so much about life and the world and _strategy_," he said incredulously. "And they was no way in hell he was going to let a pathetic human like me stand in the way of his future goals. I was told that if I tried to interfere in any way I would never see my sister again," he finished furious.

"You two were as much prisoners as the rest of us," Hank said thoughtfully.

"Funny, Rogue said the same to me that night," Emma mused as she glanced over at the dome. Charles did as well. The threat; the man who had taken every person in that room captive was still in it. "We should get back to our orders," she said; her tone turning serious once again.

"Please do," Charles said.

"The third team comprised of myself and my sister Cordelia. We were to ensure the compliance of all the members of the X-Men's and brotherhood's members," Emma said.

"Meaning what exactly?" Ororo asked in fear. "What did you do to us?" she asked.

"Mostly we kept all of you from realizing anything was wrong. A few of you realized that Mystique was acting suspiciously. We kept those suspicions from turning into allegations," Emma Frost explained as the tone of the room turned even more tense. "Team four," Emma went on, "comprised of Amelia Voght and Elisabeth Braddock. They were to ensure the survival of all mutants present during the destruction of the institute," she said.

"Magneto destroyed our home?" Hank asked.

"Yes," Graydon Creed said.

"Why? What did he gain from it?" Ororo asked confused.

"We don't know," Graydon said.

"Maybe it was a threat to Rogue?" Hank asked. "He demanded her do something and when she refused him maybe he destroyed the institute to teach her a lesson of some sort?"

"I don't believe so," Charles said. "Rogue has been cooperating with Magneto. She told me as much this morning."

"Maybe she only started cooperating _after_ he destroyed the institute?" Hank asked.

"Possibly," Charles said gravely. "It's yet another question I have for her... Who was on the fifth team?" he asked as their eyes met.

"Magneto, Colossus, Gambit, Pyro, and Sabertooth," Emma answered. "They revealed mutants to the world. That's all we know. Magneto chose not to tell us anything else," Emma finished. Charles took a deep breath. It was a lot to take in but he would have to reflect later. Until Magneto took the option away he had to find as many answers to his questions as he could.

"That night you at the restaurant what else happened?"

"After Magneto threatened me he called Emma to order them to come back into the building but something was wrong. So, Magneto and I ran out to the car. When we got there he ordered Rogue to write out a transcript of the conversation Em and her had just had," Graydon Creed said.

."Why?" Hank asked. Graydon Creed shrugged.

"Rogue and I talked about how I wanted to go in to Magneto's office, get Graydon and just go back home to Washington. But Magneto had given me an order to stay in the car and n_o ones_ disobey a direct order from Magneto. As Rogue was doing that Graydon explained everything Magneto told him in his office. Magneto read the conversation and then he ordered all of us to stay silent. Rogue he ordered out loud. He told me telepathically. I relayed the order to Graydon," Emma Frost said.

"And then Magneto dislocated my shoulder," Graydon Creed said in anger, "while he was telling us how _invaluable_ we were to him. It took all the self control I have not to scream," he said resentfully.

"Rogue didn't notice you were in pain?" Hank asked confused. "She usually very observant."

"She was too terrified to notice and she also had to follow Magneto's order the same as us. We had to listen to his rant and we all four of us knew it was lies," Emma Frost said. "After Magneto was done talking out loud he told me telepathically to bring Graydon back into the restaurant. He said if either of us looked at her it would be the last time we'd see her," Emma finished.

"Magneto wanted Rogue to believe that you believed him?" Hank asked out loud.

"It's the only conclusion that makes sense," Emma Frost agreed.

"We don't know what happened after that. Magneto said he was going to bring her back here to the institute but I stayed up all night waiting to see her again. They never came back," Graydon Creed said frustrated.

"What the hell were you two doing here?" Wolverine asked annoyed.

"It's where we were _ordered _to go," Emma Frost told him dryly.

"Where did Magneto take Rogue?" Ororo asked quickly.

"We still don't know, or for how long. Cargrill could have been impersonating her her weeks," Graydon Creed answered.

"Who is Cargrill? A shape-shifter?" Ororo asked.

"No, she was just wearing a image inductor. She was really good at sounding like Rogue though. It was actually really creepy seeing her pretend to Rogue," Graydon Creed told them.

"I see," Charles said.

"I tried using Cerbro to find her or Magneto. But it was no use. There wa-"

"Miss Frost, I am fully aware how daunting a task attempting to find Magneto is. I have never been able to locate him using it myself," Charles said.

"I tried calling Magneto that morning," Graydon Creed went on. "But it went to his voice-mail. He called back later that afternoon. When we demanded to see Rogue he started making threats again. Before we even had time to consider our options he shot them all down. Telling us how futile fighting him would be and that he wouldn't bring Rogue back to the institute ever if we even_ tried _to defy him," he said frustrated.

"There was nothing else for us to do. We had to follow Magneto's orders. Even if he wasn't blackmailing us no one disobeys Magneto. I have never suffered the consequences of disobeying an order, nor do I ever wish to," Emma Frost said.

"But we did _everything_ he asked of us and all I wanted in return was to see my sister. To make sure she was okay but he wouldn't allow it," Graydon Creed exclaimed. "We were exiled from Bayville right after the emergence," he said resentfully. "This is the first time I've seen Rogue since that night And now instead of talking to her, Magneto is keeping her from us again," he exclaimed irate.

"We'll have our chance, Graydon. Magneto's-" Emma Frost started say before the dome dissipated; revealing Magneto hold Rogue in his arms. Charles open his mouth speak, as did Wolverine.

"Shh," Magneto hushed quickly. "She's asleep," he explained in a whisper as they made eye contact. Charles quickly looked at Rogue and scanned her mind. She wasn't fully asleep yet, but certainly looked as though she was.

_'Rogue, are you alright?' _Charles asked.

_'Yeah,'_ she thought to him. '_I'm just tired really tired. Can we talk tomorrow, Prof, please?'_ she asked.

_'See you in morning,'_ he said to her. "Ororo would you please escort Magneto to Rogue's room?" he asked.

"Charles, I know where it is," Magneto said dryly.

"That is not why I asked her to and you know it," he said.

"Miss. Pride has already retired for the night, has she n-" he started to argue before he groaned. "It'll be faster if I just go along with this, won't it?" he asked dryly.

"Yes, it would," Charles said.

"Fine. Miss, Munroe if you would please?" he said as he headed for the elevator.

"Magneto, what do you plan to do once Rogue's in her room," he asked as Ororo rushed after him into the elevaator.

"Leave," he said before the elevator doors closed.

* * *

Yay! I updated! Thank you to everyone who voted! I really appreciate it! Please review!

Oh, and just to let anyone know. I'm slowly working on a new story to go along with this one. It's going to be called Individual Repartee! Basically, it will show the back-stories of people like the Professor, Amelia Vought, or Emma Frost. Anyone who has a huge change from their comic's counterpart or is just unknown to the X-Men evolution. I'm currently working on Amelia's and that will be the first chapter. That being said if anyone has any questions about a characters back story please ask and I will add it to my list of chapters to write for Individual Repartee. Thank you for reading!


	47. Chapter 46

Please enjoy!

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Forty-Six

Rogue lazily opened her eyes as she heard something shifting in the bedroom. She yawned as she saw Kitty getting out some clothes from their closet.

"It's time for school already?" she muttered.

"Ah, yeah, but the Professor said-" Kitty started to say.

_'Rogue, I understand you wished to go to school but given the circumstances I feel I must ask you to stay home one more day. You brother is going to be here by one. We hoped to discuss the situation some more. I do have questions,' _he thought. She had expected as much. It was her own fault for going to bed so early without explaining everything as she had planned. She still didn't feel like reliving the past three months but that was inevitable. Of course, there was a silver lining to the Professor's plan for the day.

_'I'm gonna get a few more hours sleep then,'_ she thought as she closed her eyes.

_'Please do,'_ he said.

"I'll see ya later, Kitty," she muttered as she felt herself drifting back to sleep.

"Good night," Kitty whispered; a smile in her voice.

* * *

Rogue had only been able to sleep for about another hour. After that, despite how many times she turned over, or how comfortable she was in her bed, she couldn't drift back to sleep. So, she let her mind wander as she laid there; her thoughts on the negotiations. A few notions came to mind. The most prevalent being that Max had an important business meeting this afternoon from three to seven. Although, the fragment suspected that it would take more time than that.

_'It's likely, once my counterpart remembers his prior engagement, that he will have to reschedule with you, my girl,'_ the fragment had told her. He had asked if she wanted the details of what the meeting was about, but she had declined his offer. She had enough on her mind as it was.

* * *

Around midday Rogue entered the kitchen, fresh out of the shower, her stomach yelling at her to eat something. The smell of pancakes fulled the air.

"Good afternoon, Rogue," Ororo said from the stove.

"Hi, Ororo," Rogue said with a smile. "How are you?" she asked.

"I'm alright. Thank you for asking. We decided to have a late breakfast. Would you like some?" she asked as Rogue walked over to the cabinet.

"That sounds great," Rogue said as she grabbed a glass. "Ya want one?" Rogue asked.

"I have coffee, but thank you," she said before she turned back to the pan on the stove. Rogue walked over the refrigerator and poured herself a glass of orange juice.

"Ya need any help with anything?" she asked.

"No," Ororo smiled. "Go ahead and sit. These will be done in just a moment," she said before Rogue did as she was instructed; taking a sip of her drink.

"Good afternoon," Professor Xavier said as he entered the room.

"They're almost done, Charles," Ororo said as Rogue took another sip.

"Thank you, Ororo," the Professor said as he moved up to the counter and poured himself some coffee.

"How are you, Rogue?" he asked.

"I'm fine," she said as he moved to the refrigerator and poured a little milk in his coffee. "I'm not tired anymore. I couldn't fall back to sleep if I tried," she said.

"That's good," he smiled as he moved up to the table. "I'm glad to hear it!" he said as he put sugar in his coffee. "...How are you doing emotionally?" he asked.

"Actually, I'm feeling pretty optimistic. I don't really wanna go over the past few month with ya' all but there's a lot I need to say. So, I'll deal. You can start asking questions any time ya wanna," she told him before she took a sip of her drink.

"Very well," he said as Ororo brought a large stack of pancakes and three plates to the table.

"No one else is eating?" Rogue asked as Ororo walked over and grabbed some forks and knifes.

"Hank ate with the students this morning and Logan went for a drive last night," Ororo said as she sat down.

"He still hasn't gotten back, huh?" Rogue asked sadly as she grabbed a fork.

"No, not yet," the Professor said as he and Ororo followed suit.

"Do ya wanna wait till after we eat to ask questions?" Rogue asked.

"I suppose it doesn't make much difference," he said sadly as Rogue poured syrup on her food. She handed the bottle to Ororo when she was done with it.

"Thank you," she smiled. Rogue returned it.

"When was the first time, Magneto kidnapped you?" the Professor asked.

"Ya mean since I absorbed him, right?" she asked. She watched the professor's eyes widen for a moment. They both knew the first time was when she was still in diapers.

"...Yes, yes that is what I meant," he clarified before he took a bite of his food.

"About an hour after I absorbed him," she answered. Her eyes widened as the Professor started to couch. "Are you okay?" she asked concerned as he took a large sip of his coffee.

"Charles?" Ororo asked.

"...I'm- I'm fine," he said after a moment.

"Are ya sure ya don't wanna wait till after we eat?" Rogue asked again.

"No," he coughed. "No, that's alright. Please continue," he said.

"Hm- so, yeah, it was about an hour after I absorbed him that he astro-projected himself inta my mind for the first time."

"Why?" Ororo asked.

"Hmm-" Rogue said uncertain.

_'Because I had no telepath available at that time. I knew what your powers were but was unaware how grossly under-trained they were. I thought, before entering your mind, that I might have to take measures that night to keep you from telling Charles certain information. I thought it best to find out what I was dealing with _before_ allowing you to return to the institute,' _the fragment provided. She let out a short laugh of disbelief.

"This all happened 'cause he didn't have anyone else available that night. He didn't have anyone else to see how much a threat I was," she told them in disbelief. "If he had _one_ telepath available, just one, none of this would have happened. He never would have-" she said out loud.

_'Anna, I am honestly glad that no one else was available,' _he said.

_'I- I don't know if I am or not- I mean, I'm grateful for all you're help and-'_

_'You don't have to explain, my girl. From my prospective, I have been present in you mind for the entirety of our relationship. I've seen everything you have; shared in your strives and triumphs. Without you uttering a word, I already understand you feelings _completely,_'_ he said.

_'...I don't know if that's suppose to be creepy or comforting,'_ she thought.

_'We're talking about _our_ relationship, Anna. It's a little of both,'_ he thought with a smirk in his tone. She rolled her eyes with a smile before she turned her attention back to the Professor. He was waiting patiently.

"Sorry," she said quickly, "We got into a conversation," she explained.

"It's alright. You were saying?" he asked.

"Oh, right, that Max started helping me with my powers on Christmas Eve but he was already took me as his prisoner. I just didn't know it," she said.

"I see," the Professor said as he took a deep breath.

* * *

Charles listened intently as Rogue explained the first time she became aware that Magneto was holding her captive, how she had found out, and what else occurred that long day everyone had played baseball outside. Charles had asked a few questions about the chess match between them. He was interested in how she had manipulated him. So was she, it turned out.

"And then he asked; 'What is there is stop me from going back on my word. Then I said; 'The fact that you gave it. You're still trying to _recruit_ me, Eric. The _last_ thing you want to destroy is what _little_ trust I have in you. I know what means you're willing to use to get what you want. I know that killing isn't beneath you. Neither blackmail. The promises you've made me, teaching me about my powers, never feeling loneliness again.'"

"'That life with _you_ would be better than with the X-Men. Me believing that you're gonna do all that. That you're capable and willing to, that's the _only _reason I would _ever_ consider joining you. If I did join you, and found out about it, and I _would_ find out about it," she said; Charles noted the smirk on her face as she repeated that particular line. "I'd leave you in a heart beat. So, am I certain you haven't read my mind? Oh yeah. You wouldn't _dare,'" _she finished softly. Rogue's eyes were distant. She was clearly deep in thought.

"...After that game things changed between us. It was subtle... So, fucking subtle I didn't even notice until now, but he started to play by those rules. Everything he said, good or bad, he was fighting to regain my trust. I used that to my advantage so many fucking times," she laughed. "And yeah, now I- now I trust him again. But he knows, all it would take to destroy my trust in him is one broken promise. That's it," she explained. "Ya know, the only difference between then and now is; back then I was acting on instinct, but now, I actually_ know_ what I'm doing," she said amazed. "It makes me- ..."

"Yes?" Charles asked.

"...Close to the same caliber of strategist that he is," she said softly in disbelief.

"Yesterday he said you were a _master_ strategist," Charles said. She glanced up at him surprised.

"I didn't think I was_ that_ good, yet," she said under his breath.

"Magneto apparently does," Charles said.

"Yeah," she mumbled.

* * *

Rogue became vague when he asked what occurred right after the chess match.

"Rogue, if you wish to skip certain events that occurred between the two of you when he was holding you captive in your bedroom, I understand. Or you could simply say, he tried to seduce me and we'll leave it at that," Charles offered as Ororo stood up clean up from breakfast. He could sense Ororo's discomfort with the conversation. He would offer to help but he knew that Ororo was just looking for an excuse to leave the conversation for a moment to collect herself.

"I- Ororo, do you want any help?" Rogue asked.

"No, you two talk. I'll clean up," she said with a smile.

"Thank you, Ororo," Charles said before he turned his attention back to Rogue. She let out a sigh.

"He tried to seduce me, but he got a phone call and had to leave. Hey, what did Emma say to you?" she asked the fragment aloud. Charles knew it was for his benefit.

There was a moment of silence.

"_A _tree_?" _she laughed. "A tree took a considerable amount of planning?" she asked mockingly. Charles eyes widen in shock. "Really?" she laughed. For most the day Charles had been unable to return to the institute because of a downed tree on the road.

_'For which Magneto was responsible for?'_ he asked himself in disbelief as Rogue exclaimed,

"Work of strategical genius, my ass," she smirked, rolling her eyes. After an hour of siting in bumper to bumper traffic he had decided to turn around and run another errand. Once he was done he had hoped that the traffic would be cleared but still he had to sit for another half hour until he was able to drive home. Ororo glanced over at him, wide eyed. She had been with him in the car. Magneto had successfully kept them both from the institute that day.

"If we had only known," Ororo said quietly. "I would have flew us home. We would have abandoned the car. We would have never allow Magneto to have-" Ororo said in anger. Her usual complete control over her emotions was slipping.

"I know that, Ororo. Ya didn't do anything wrong. It was just_ traffic_. How could you have known that Max was the cause of it?" Rogue asked.

_'I was stuck in traffic the day Magneto attempted to kidnap her from the school. The others had to come retrieve me. He's utilized that tactic more than once,'_ he realized in disbelief.

"This will not happen again," Ororo said strongly.

"I know it won't," Rogue agreed as she glanced at Ororo.

_'Because she's believe in us or because she is going to hold Magneto to his word?'_ he asked himself; knowing the answer was the latter.

"Prof?" Rogue asked concerned. He glanced up at her. "Are you okay?" she asked concerned.

"I'm fine. You don't have to worry about me," he said with a smile.

"Except you're lying and I worry whether I have ta or not," she told him. Charles sighed as he held his fingers to the bridge of his nose.

"I am your guardian, Rogue. It is my job to protect and worry about you. Not the other way around," he said.

"It's a little late for that, Prof," she laughed as his expression turned dark."...And who's says a teenager can't worry about their guardian? Ask how they are? Have a serious conversation about what's bothering them?" she asked.

"No one, I suppose," he said; deciding, for the moment, to drop the subject.

* * *

Rogue went in to explain that she had promised to not tell anyone that Magneto had come to the institute in exchange that he left.

"Not that, that lasted long," Rogue sighed. "He came back only an hour later."

"Why?" Charles asked. He noticed her hesitation. "Rogue, whatever it is. Whatever happened that night, not matter how much you think it might upset me,_ I need to know,_" he said strongly. Her watched her take a deep breath.

"I was talking to both of you and Mr. McCoy in your office. I was tired and really stressed out. You could tell," she said making eye contact with him. "So, when I lied, saying that Magneto hadn't threatened me, ya didn't believe me," she told him.

"But why don't we remember this conversation?" Ororo asked; once again sitting at the table with them.

"Cause Magneto didn't want ya to," she said quietly as she glanced down at the table. Charles watched her facial expression change. He saw the same fear there now as he had when she had relived that moment in the Sarhara. He opened his mouth to call her out of the memory but stopped when she closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She opened them a moment later.

"I'm sorry I could not stop him from terrifying you," Charles said bitterly.

"... It ain't your fault, Prof," she said as they made eye contact. "The way he's run things in the past; all the mutants he's kept hidden from view,_ telepaths_ especially. He _wanted_ you to underestimate him. And he got what he wanted. He usually does" she shrugged. Charles nodded thoughtfully.

"So, that night you learned that Magneto could have free reign of our home, that I nor any of the other mutants in the institute was capable of stopping him, that he could take you from your home whenever he pleased and... that he loved you," he finished with a sigh.

"Yup, pretty much," she said indifferently. It disturbed him that she seemed un-phased by Magneto invasion of her privacy, of her freedom. It was although, for her, this was normal.

_'Her fear, Magneto's complete domination over her, and the kindness he was willing to show her... all of it a prefect breeding ground for stockholm syndrome,'_ he realized appalled. "...And you care for him?" he asked.

"Yeah," she answered with a raised eyebrow.

"Did you happen to notice if your feelings for him _intensified_ at all after that day?" he asked; knowing she was trying to figure out what he was alluding to.

"...No," she said. "Until then I had been thinking about the fragment, Eric, and Magneto as too different people. Eric, I liked, and Magneto I was afraid of. But once I learned that they were the same, it took me a few days to wrap my head around that," she explained.

"I see," he said. He needed to know more. If her feelings were the product of that syndrome then he could not allow Magneto any more time to strengthen the bond. Although, he had a feeling that both of them were going to insist upon being allowed to meet. He wasn't sure which of them would advocate for it more vigorously. "So, he left, I presume, sometime that night. When exactly?" the Professor asked.

"I don't know. I fell asleep," she said.

"In my office?" he asked with an raised eyebrow._ 'For the love of god, please let her say my office,'_ he thought to himself desperately.

"...No, in my bedroom," she answered uneasy. He watched her lower her head as her face flushed. "He tired to seduce me," she said for at least the fifth time that morning. Charles let out a groan in frustration.

"I would just like to point out, that among Magneto's_ many_ transgressions against you, that I find his ability to seduce you immediately after threatening you incredibly distasteful and unethical," he said.

"That makes two of us," she told him; surprising him. "...I yelled at him for it," she said.

"What did he say in response?" he asked.

"He apologized and left me alone that night- hm... this was the night I found out you were being held captive by Max," she clarified. "This was the ah- twenty-second."

"We'll come back to that but for now lets go back to the night of the fifteenth. When did you see him next after you fell asleep?" he asked.

"The next morning," she answered.

"Why did he come to see you?" Charles asked.

"Cause he- ah... he left two shirts for me and he wanted to see how I looked in them," she answered meekly before he saw anger in her expression which all too quickly turned into fear. He put aside, with effort, his own disgust and instead focused on her.

"Rogue, what else happened that morning? Did he threaten you again?" he asked.

"...Yes," she said before she took deep breaths. "God, I hate that look," she muttered.

"What look?" Ororo asked.

"Like he wanted to kill me," she answered as his eyes widened. "He doesn't ever," she said in response to his expression. "I mean, he even promised-" she started to say before she stopped herself.

"Promised what, Rogue?" Charles asked.

"...That- that I would outlive him," she said with a small smile, "and he meant it too," she added with warmth in her voice.

_'It's no wonder she feels safe with him,'_ he thought to himself. "When was this?" he asked.

"February twenty-sixth," she answered.

"Was this before or after your brother and Miss Frost went back into the restaurant?" he asked.

"After. Like, half an hour later. We were still outside the restaurant," she said.

_'So, he isolated her and then promised her she would always be safe with him,'_ he thought. Again stockholm syndrome came to mind. "Did Magneto make any other promises that night?" he asked. She glanced away from him, at first not responding.

"...We ah- Maybe we should go back to the sixteenth and work our way up to that," she said. He glanced at her curiosity. They only had ten minutes until Graydon and Emma returned. Going back meant postponing the discussion of that night until later this afternoon, maybe tomorrow. There wasn't a doubt in his mind that she didn't know that. He sighed.

_'She had been though so much these past few months. Her freedom stripped away. All the revelations about her past and Magneto causing an unfathomable amount of stress. Perhaps I should allow her this one manipulation,' _he thought to himself. Rogue let out an annoyed sigh.

"I don't wanna talk about that night yet. We're gonna have ta, I know, but does it have ta be today?" she asked; clearly switching tactics.

"No, I suppose not. But may I make a request?" he asked.

"Aside from that one?" she teased. He sighed.

"Yes. If you do not wish to discuss a certain subject, please just say so in the first place. Please do not try to manipulate me," he said. She cast her gaze away from his.

"Sorry... it's a bad habit I picked up," she muttered.

"I understand that keeping all of those secrets must have been incredibly taxing on you. I do no blame you for falling into those habits and I doubt that the negative effects caused by your captivity will simply disappear over night. I'm just happy that I am finally in a position to help you through it. I'm sorry that he kept me from offering you aid for so long," he said.

"It's not you fault," Rogue said quietly as he studied her face.

"Charles, Rogue," Ororo said, calling for their attention.

"Yes?" Charles asked.

"Your brother is here," Ororo said as the three of them glanced at the t.v's showing the institute's grounds.

"I'll go get them," Rogue said quickly as she stood. Charles sighed as he watched her rush out of the room.

* * *

Graydon stood with Emma outside the institute waiting impatiently.

"Where is the doorbell?" Graydon said annoyed.

"I don't think gazebos have doorbells," Emma said dryly. "...I'm certain they'll realize we're here soon enough," she said. As if on cue the elevator doors opened. Rogue rushed out and pulled Graydon into a hug, which he returned.

"Thanks for not believing his bullshit," Rogue said.

"Anytime, Rogue," he said. They pulled apart a moment later.

"Ya wanna come inside?" she asked.

"Yeah," he said with a small smile before they both followed her into the elevator.

* * *

Rogue saw the Professor watching them as she Graydon and Emma walk out of the elevator.

"Ya all hungry?" Rogue asked as they walked down the hallway.

"No, we ate before we came," Emma answered.

"But thanks," Graydon finish as they three of them sat down at the table.

"Kurt should be home in about an hour," The Professor informed them. She watched a smile come to Graydon's face as Emma took hold of his hand.

"I'm finally going to get to meet him," he beamed.

_'Ah, fuck,'_ Rogue though to herself.

"Rogue, what's wrong?" Emma asked concerned.

"It's ah- it's nothing," Rogue said quickly as she and Emma gazed at each other. Emma raised an eyebrow.

"You're lying," Emma pointed out as Rogue's eyes narrowed.

"So, maybe I am but you shouldn't know that. Stop scanning my mind. It's annoying," she said as she crossed her arms over her chest.

"Habit," Emma said dryly.

"Whatever," Rogue huffed.

"Well, what's wrong?" Emma asked again.

"Aside from my privacy being invad-" Rogue started to asked.

"Miss Frost, if you cannot keep yourself from reading my ward's mind, I will have to ask you to leave," the Professor said stepping in. "When I asked last night, the two of you said you intended to _stay_ in Magneto's employ. Can I assume you have not changed your minds over night?"

"Yes, you can," Emma said with narrowed eyes.

"Then aside from the breach of privacy, please understand my need to assure that you are not here simply to collect information. Given the circumstances, I believe, asking you to refrain from using your powers is not unreasonable," the Professor said.

"No, it's not," Graydon said quickly as he turned to Emma.

* * *

_'So, you're agreeing with him,' _Emma asked Graydon incredulously.

_'Em, he just found out yesterday that's we're partly responsible for his kidnapping. That we sat back and did nothing while he and his whole family were being held captive-'_

_'While we were being blackmailed by Magneto too-' _

_'And we're still choosing to work for him. We're still the enemy. He's wary of having an enemy telepath in his home,' _Graydon thought.

"Fine," Emma said defensively as she stood up. "I'll see you back at the hotel," she said as she started to march off.

"Em, that's not what I meant," Graydon asked as he stood up after her. "I want you here. I want you to meet him too," he said as he took hold of her hand. He spun her around to face him. "I'm sorry. You know how delicate this all is. I don't want to be banned from seeing my siblings again, okay?" he asked. She sighed.

"Graydon, of course, that's okay," Emma said.

_'I know asking you to not to use your powers is like not asking you not to breath. So, you can read my mind all you want. But please while we're here; just read mine, okay, Em?_' he asked. She sighed.

_'Fine,'_ she thought as they two of them turned around to go back into the kitchen. _'...I'm not apologizing,'_ she declared.

_'I didn't ask you to,' _he thought as they sat down. "Sorry about that," he said to Rogue and the others.

_'You shouldn't have either,' _she reprimanded.

"Sorry, for snapping at ya, Emma," Rogue said; Graydon noticed Emma was surprised by the apology. "Having privacy's kinda a big deal for me right now," she said.

"...I understand," Emma said.

"Rogue, if it's alright with anyone present, I would like to continue discussing-" Charles Xavier started to say before Hank McCoy came into the room with a phone in his hands.

"It's Magneto," Hank McCoy informed them all dryly.

* * *

Rogue stood up with a sigh and reached out for the phone. Rogue saw Mr. McCoy look to the Professor; her gaze turned as well. The Professor hesitated for a moment before nodding. She took the phone from Mr. McCoy and put it to her hear.

"Ya can't meet tonight, can ya?" Rogue asked. She noted surprise in the Professor's gaze.

"Rogue, if he-" the Professor started to say before Rogue put her fingers up against her lips.

"Please," she mouthed to all of them as Magneto said,

"I know this is not what we agreed upon."

_'Let me handle this,' _she told the Professor as Magneto said,

"But please try to understand," he started to say as the Professor nodded at her again.

"Oh, I understand alright. I'd go into detail about how much I understand but I got people sitting in front of me that you would rather didn't know those details. So, I'll keep them to myself, assuming" she buffed. She hadn't looked into the details but she knew that no matter what his meeting was about he wouldn't want the Professor to know the details, "we can both agree that _Saturday _would be the best day to reschedule this meeting. Did you pass that message along to Victor?" she asked.

"...Yes, yes I did," he said; surprised by the question.

"Thank you for doing that. I really appreciate it, Max. I'm gonna call Victor and see if he wants to gets dinner on Friday. So, _that's_ why this has to wait till Saturday," she explained.

"...Very well," Max said.

"Okay," she said with a smile. "So, you'll see me and talk to me again on Saturday," she said as she glanced around the room. "And not a moment fucking sooner," she commanded in German. There was a long pause.

"...You have my word," he said also switching to German.

"You better keep that promise, Max, cause I'm going to check," she told him.

"Excuse me?" he asked.

"You heard me," she told him. "For too long I have sat by and _assumed_ that you have kept your promises. But this is too damn important. I need to know I'm not being watched all the time. I need to know that I have privacy. I need to know that I actually_ have_ my freedom. That this is not just another facade you're setting up to get you're way," she said. She paused for a moment given him a chance to speak but he chose not too. So, she went on.

"This morning I looked into some of your ideas about training my powers. If your serious about half of them then I am going to need to absorb _someone_ during practice. We both know that you would not mind it being you. That you would prefer it was you," she said.

"You wish to make your training a condition of the truce?" he asked curiosity.

"You don't?" she asked.

"I hadn't thought about it as of yet," he told her.

"Well, I have," she said.

"Extensively?"

"Getting there. Just give me a few more hours alone..." she said. She heard him open his mouth to speak. "And before you get any ideas you already gave me your word that after this phone call you would not speak or see me again until Saturday. So, unless you are willing to destroy all that work you put into regaining my trust, the negotiations for the truce will not be happening until then. Unless you're prepared to have it right now. I can put you on speaker phone?" she asked; although she already knew the answer.

"Anna, my meeting starts in half an hour. I do not have time," he said annoyed.

"I guess it is going to have to wait then," she said with a smirk. He sighed. Her smiled faded. All this time they had been playing games with on another. She would lying if she claimed not to have enjoyed them but at the moment they were unnecessary and there was something she wanted to know. A question she couldn't ask the fragment in her mind and get, without a doubt, the correct answer to. She took a deep breath.

"...You do realize I am just going to keep getting better at this, right?" she asked seriously as she retook her seat. There was a long pause from him.

"...That thought has crossed my mind more than once this past week," he admitted. "Although, I'm hardly surprised by your progress. Since the first, I've known what your mental capabilities are. I could not be more proud you and what you've accomplished thus far," he said.

"Thus far?" she repeated thoughtfully. "So, you still want to teach me more strategical principals?"

"You're the one who requested to make your training a condition of the truce," he pointed out.

"Training for my _powers;_ not strategy," she clarified.

"I hardly see the difference. You're abilities are so rooted within the art of the strategy I could scarcely see the point of even attempting to teach one without the other," he said.

"Even if giving me that knowledge would make you more vulnerable?" she asked. He chuckled. "Don't laugh, we both know just how much power I have over you, Max-" she started to say.

"Which would be on par with the degree of control I have over you," he interjected.

"And you would still wanna teach me strategy?"

"And you would still like to let me touch you?" he asked as she felt her breath caught in her throat. She quickly stood up and turned her back on the Professor's and others as she felt her face blush.

"Rogue are you-" she heard Graydon start to ask.

"She's fine," Emma answered for her.

"Rogue, I'm going to have to insist that you end that phone call, _now_," the Professor said strongly. She heard Magneto huff in annoyance as she took a deep breath.

"My girl, I am letting you know this fact, right now; I refuse to ask Charles' permission to see you," he said. "If he even attempts too-"

"No more threats," she shouted out desperately in English. She knew the Professor wouldn't allow her to continue much longer if she had persisted speaking in German. "You're done threatening my family. That's non-negotiable. If you can't agree to that then we might as well go back to fighting," she said strongly.

"Neither of us want that," Magneto said.

"No shit," Rogue exclaimed as she sat back down. She ran her hand though her hair as she took deep. Her plan was already made up in her mind. She hadn't expected to tell either Magneto or the Professor the full details of it until Saturday but now it seemed necessary to inform them both.

"Fuck, this is gonna take hours. Do you realize how much shit the two of us need to talk about? I mean, you mentioned writing out a list of things I know about you that you don't want me ta tell anyone else. And in exchange for my silence you're gonna agree to a list of stipulations in both mine and the x-men's best interest. That's the basis for the truce we're gonna make, right?" she asked Magneto as she glanced up at the Professor. She took the phone away from her ear and quickly switched it to speaker phone.

"...Yes, I suppose," Magneto said as the Professor nodded in agreement thoughtfully. "As I told you before, I haven't had time to fully contemplate the conditions of the truce. I assumed we were going to wait until tonight to even consider the terms," he said.

"Right, 'cause you were busy with your business dealings, and you assumed that Prof would be busy learning everything he could about what's been going on. So, who would've had time to think about the terms yet?" she asked. Rogue watched the Professor raise an eyebrow at her. "Aside from me... this morning... for about three hours straight," she said.

"Three fill hours," Magneto repeated back in a groan.

"Ah fuck, I _just_ remembered. I can't believe this slipped my mind for so long but Victor's_ busy _on Friday. We can't get dinner that night. Fuck, I guess it's gonna wait till next week. I mean, unless ya wanna wait till Sunday-" she started to ask with a smirk.

"Not a chance in hell, Anna Marie. I've blindly given you enough of an advantage as it is," Magneto said. "... Manipulative wench," he added under his breath.

"Well, whose fault is that?" Rogue asked with a laugh.

"Mine, I suspect," he said before chuckling slightly. "Do you have access to a laptop?" he asked suddenly.

"No, I don't" she said.

"I'll send you one sometime today," he said.

"Okay, so I'll have a copy of the draft for the truce typed up by Saturday," she said.

"Assuming you get that far. Get as much done as you can, but for the love of God, Anna, take care of yourself in the process," he commanded lightly.

"I already ate today and I've lost count how many hour I've slept this week," she said.

"Good," he said. "It's not healthy the way you were neglecting yourself," he said as she rolled her eyes. "You can roll your eyes all you like, my girl. But the fact remains that you blacked out because of your self-imposed neglect and there's no reason for that to happen again," he lectured.

"Okay, okay," she said quickly. "So, I can print the draft out in your office at the restaurant. Enough copies for you, me, and Prof?" she asked changing the subject.

"...My thoughts exact-," he said before pausing. She smirked.

"Sucks, doesn't it? Knowing you're gonna be present for something really important, but because of circumstances out of your control you won't remember any of it,"she said pointedly. He sighed.

"As much as I would _love_ to further have my ego torn asunder, I do have a meeting to prepaid for," he said.

"Saturday, two a'clock," Rogue reminded him.

"And not a moment fucking sooner," he said. She laughed softly. "Till then, my love," he said in German.

"Bye, Max," she said in English with a smile as she hung up the phone; slightly disappointed that he had to end the call.

* * *

Okay, that's it for this chapter! I hoped you all enjoyed it! Please review! :)


	48. Chapter 47

Hi, all! This chapter references to chapters 13- 18! Just to let you know. Damn, that was a while ago. ^.^ Thank you for reading and please review! A simple happy face will make the hours of work I put into writing this chapter worth it!

Please enjoy!

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Forty-Seven

* * *

_'Can __we __go __home ,__now?_' Emma asked dryly to Garydon. _'After __we __meet __your __brother ,__of __course. __But __it's __obvious __that __Rogue __can __take __care __of __herself.'_

_'Emma-'_he started to protest.

_'Graydon t__hink __about __this __for __a __moment. __Really __let __it __sink __in...__Rogue _manipulated _Magneto,__" _Emma exclaimed. _'..._Magneto_: __one __of __the __world's __most __powerful __mutants __and __your_ baby sister _manipulated __him...'_ she thought to him before pausing. His eyes widen in disbelief._'_..._She __doesn't __need __our __help_,' Emma finished bluntly.

Graydon glanced over at his sister as she hung up the phone. There was a smile on her face. She seemed to be completely in her element while talking to Magneto. Not only that, but Rogue was enjoying herself, he had realized. Emma was right, she didn't need their help. He doubted that she wanted it, either.

_'...Okay, __we __can __go __home __today,'_ Graydon sighed.

* * *

Charles Xavier sat uneasy as he listened to Rogue and Magneto converse in German. Once again she was smiling, laughing with him. Given the language barrier, the only thing he was able to gleam from the exchange was that Rogue was controlling the conversation. Until she switched back to English and then her control was painfully apparent. He wasn't quite sure what to make of that. Was Magneto only humoring her, or was she truly able to pull the wool over his eyes?

He honestly wished that she would stop speaking in German was while talking to him. He knew little enough as it was, but Rogue's actions continued to handicap him. He suspected that the switch had not been entirely necessary, but he wasn't sure. There were so many things he was uncertain of at the moment.

He was extremely uncomfortable with the entire situation and it seemed as though he was powerless to change a thing. A fact that was frustrating him to no end. Once he knew everything then perhaps he could think of someway to tip the scales in his and the X-Men's favor.

Charles studied Rogue's face as she hung up the phone. She seemed disappointed that she had to end the conversation. Her eyes quickly glanced up at him. There was pride in her gaze, she was clearly happy with the outcome of that conversation. She held his gaze for a moment. Her gaze shifted around the table before she let out a sigh. She closed her eyes for a moment and took a deep breath.

_'Sorry __about __talking __in __German __like __that. __I __know __it's __makes __ya __uncomfortable. __I'll __go __into __detail __about __that __after __Gray __and __Emma __leave, __okay?'_ Rogue asked.

_'You __don't __wish __to __talk __in __front __of __them?'_ he asked confused.

_'Not __when __they're __gonna __have __ta __report __everything __we __say __to __Magneto,'_ she told him.

_'__… __Very __well,_' he said before Rogue opened her eyes again.

"You okay, sis?" Graydon asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Just needed a second," Rogue said.

"Do you need some water?" Hank asked.

"No thanks, Mr. McCoy," Rogue said with a slight smile. "I'm just gonna go run ta the bathroom. I'll be back in a few minutes," she said.

"Take all the time you need, Rogue," Charles said he watched her stand up. She smiled at him slightly as she turned to leave the room.

Kurt wasn't going to be home for another half hour or so. He had wanted to continue learning what had taken place the last couple of month. But now that he knew they could not speak freely, in front of Miss Frost and Mr Creed, he wasn't sure what they should talk about. He glanced over at Mr Creed and Miss Frost; the boy looked up at Emma. It seemed the two of them were conversing telepathically again. He let out a sigh as he moved away from the table to refill his mug with coffee. A gesture which should buy him at least twenty seconds. This was going to be a very long half an hour...

* * *

Magneto frantically reviewed the file he had prepared on his spare lab-top. He had written out a document detailing the format and some guidelines of the draft for the truce. If nothing else, he was, at least, going to control that aspect of their dealings.

For the past fifteen minutes he had contemplated his next move and was satisfied with what up he had planned. With this last act his apologize to Anna would be complete and never could she hold against him the crimes he had committed against her in the past.

His meeting would began soon but he wanted to get this computer to Rogue before the meeting overtook his schedule and more importantly while Emma Frost and Graydon Creed were still guaranteed to be within the institute. They're presents was necessary for this point to really sink in for hi girl.

"Father?" a heard a voice call out.

"Pietro, please come in," Magneto called out. The door quickly opened: within a second he was standing in front of his desk.

"So, what's so important?" he asked.

"I need you to deliver something for me," Magneto said; not taking his eyes off of the computer screen.

"Sure," Pietro said; even though they both knew Magneto had not exactly asked him to. It was expected that Pietro would follow his orders; without question or complaint. Thus far, his son had never disappointed him. "Who's it to?" he asked.

"Rogue," Magneto answered as he surveyed the files one last time.

"Seriously?" Pietro asked confused as Magneto began to turn off the computer. "So, she's a spy?"

"No, she isn't," Magneto said as; frustrated at how long it was taking the lab-top to shut down. "But An-" he started to say before he stopped himself. "The situation is very complicated, Pietro and I do not have the time to explain it fully," he said more sternly than he had meant.

"Sorry, sir, I didn't mean to pry. I-" Pietro started to rant until Magneto held up his hand. The apology was unnecessary and he didn't have time for it.

"I need you to listen carefully, my son, because I do not have time to give these orders twice." Magneto watched Pietro's eyes light up in joy at the use of, 'my son'.

"Yes, sir," he said with a nod.

"Go to the Xavier Institute..." he started to say.

* * *

Rogue let out a sigh as she walked down the hall, away from the Professor and the others. Everyone's faces were stuck in her mind. The looks of disgust were starting to get to her. Was it really so bad that she liked him?

_'You've __done __nothing __wrong,'_ the fragment of Magneto said; after a moment.

_'Then __why __was __everyone _looking _at __me __like __that?'_ she asked annoyed as she walked into the bathroom. It's was only a few feet down the hallway, towards the elevator. She stopped himself from slamming the door behind her; instead closing it gently.

_'Because __they __do __not __understand. __Charles __is __gasping __at __straws; __attempting __to __learn __all __that __has __occurred. __He __is __only __now __fully __realizing __the __danger __he __and __his __students __wer e__in..._Were_, __of __course, __being __the __key __word __there, __my __girl. __You __have __successfully __protected __them,'_he said as she washed her face._'This __truce __will __be__ enacted. __The __only __question __now __is __who __will __dictate __the __majority __of __the __terms,'_he said. Rogue let out a short laugh as she reached for the towel.

_'That __would __be __me, __sugar,'_she thought with a smirk before she dried her face.

_'That __remains __to __be __seen, __Anna. __My __counterpart __could __still __claim __control,'_ he insisted as she hung up the towel on it's rack.

_'I __wouldn't __let __him,'_ she thought strongly as she glanced at himself in the mirror.

_'Charles __could __also __attempt __to __get __his __way,'_ the fragment warned.

_'Prof ain't my enemy and I ain't gonna start treating him like he is cause of this truce. I'll explain ta him tha-'_

_'That __you __wish __to __meet __with __me __at __least __once __a __week, __for __hours __on __end, __to __learn __how __to __control __your __abilities; __a __task __that __will __primary __involve __the __two __of __us _touching_? __I'm __certain __he __won't __have _any _objections __to _that_,'_ he said as she rolled her eyes.

_'Ya __know, __if __ya __ain't __gonna __say __anything __helpful, __ya __could __just __be __quiet,'_ she pointed out.

_'Who __are __you __really __annoyed __with, __my__girl; __me __for __speaking __the __truth __or __Charles __for __the __argument __you __know __is __inevitable?__" _he asked.

"I ain't annoyed at anyone," she exclaimed frustrated.

"Rogue," Ororo's voice called out concerned.

"Fuck," Rogue muttered under her breath. "I'm fine," she called out before she walked over and opened the door; sure enough Ororo was standing in front of it. "I'm fine," she repeated calmly. "I'll be out in a few minutes," she repeated before she closed the door. She sat down on the toilet seat cover and let out a sigh.

_'Rogue?'_ the Professor projected into her mind.

_'I __said __I __was __fine,'_she repeated annoyed. The fragment let out a chuckle at her tone._'Shut __up, __Max,'_she ordered.

_'You _could _choose __not __to __converse __with __him,'_the Professor suggested.

_'It __ain't __that __simple,'_she sighed.

_'Why __is __that, __Rogue? __Is __the __fragment __threatening __you __in __some__way?'_the Professor asked.

_'Not __now __he __ain't,'_she huffed. There was a long pause.

_'...__So, __the __fragment __has __threatened __you __in __the __past?'_ he asked.

_'...Yeah, __he __has,'_she thought; wishing she had just thought 'no'.

_'When?'_the Professor asked. Rogue let out a sigh as she exited the bathroom.

"I might as well just keep telling ya what's been going on," Rogue said as she walked back up to the table. "Okay, so ya know when ya asked me if he threatened me again on February thirteenth?" she asked. The Professor nodded.

"The answer to which was yes," the Professor pointed out. "Would it be too painful, for you, to ask how he threatened you?"

"...Kinda, I just don't want to, okay?" she asked. The Professor nodded once again.

"So, after he threatened me, I was ordered to go back to my bedroom. I did as I was ordered to but he wasn't there- no, he was there in the room. I just couldn't see him. Anyway, he knocked me unconscious and when I woke up he was gone. It was just me and the fragment. I was scared... of everything. I would've jumped at my own shadow at that point but hm- right the fragment, it had been altered by someon-"

_'Mastermind,'_ the fragment supplied.

"Mastermind," Rogue repeated, "and he didn't have half of Magneto's memories. 'Cause of that he was a totally different person. He didn't remember any of the time we had spent together so, he didn't give a shit about me and he let me know that right away. He _hated_ me for absorbing him. He didn't understand Max's feelings for me and he resented the both of us for his imprisonment in my mind."

"The only thing he wanted was to get back to Magneto and continue his work for mutant-kind, but he couldn't do that unless I called Max. Way he figured he could get me ta do that was by torturing me psychologically," Rogue paused at the few gasps that emanated from everyone at the table. "He tried to break my spirit, so I would say yes to Max and join him. He threatened to undo all the training the two of us had done with my powers-" she said before pausing.

She could go into more detail by already she could feel the tears forming in her eyes. It was taking all of her willpower not to fall into a flashback; to explain what had occurred while staying far enough detached from the memories to keep herself going. "It was the worst four days of my life, and considering the fucked up shit I've had to deal with, that is fucking saying something," she finished embittered.

"...So, were you right, sis?" Greydon started to ask as her eyes snapped to meet his. "Did Magneto _knowingly_ let you to be psychologically tortured?" he asked calmly; but Rogue could see the rage in his eyes.

"...I- I haven't asked him yet," Rogue muttered. "Prof, Emma, could you both, please, listen ta the answer with me?" she asked.

"Of course," he said as Emma huffed "Sure."

"Thanks," she said to both of them.

_'So?'_ the Professor asked the fragment.

_'...Yes __and __no,'_ Magneto answered after a moment; clearly choosing his words with care, _'I __knew __my __counterpart __was __going __to __test __her __resolve. __But __I __didn't __know __to __what __extent. __I __was __genuinely __shocked __to __learn __to __what __extremes __he __had __gone __to __and __I __meant __my __promise __to __keep __it __from __ever __happening __again,'_he finished.

_'That's __certainly __convenient,'_the Professor said dryly.

_'That's __what __I __said,'_ Rogue said, _'but __he's __telling __the __truth. __You __can __feel __that, __right?' _she asked; part of her relieved that she wasn't gaining another reason to hate Magneto.

_'Yes, __I __can,'_ Emma said as the Professor nodded before they both left her mind. "He didn't know the fragment was torturing her," she said aloud for everyone's benefit.

"The fragment didn't know that the fragment was doing this? How is that even possible?" Ororo asked confused.

"Different fragments," Rogue said. "It's complicated, but every time I absorb someone again the fragment that was already in my mind and the new one merge into one being. That fragment has all the memories of being out in the real world and being in my hea-"

* * *

Charles's concentration from the conversation waned as he heard a voice in his mind.

_'Chuck, __I __caught _Quicksilver _sneaking __around __the __grounds,'_Wolverine said.

"Prof, Emma, what is it?" Rogue asked. Charles glanced at Emma Frost, she had a hand to her temple.

"It's Quicksilver, he's here," Charles answered.

"That was fast," Rogue said with a smirk. "I'll be right-" she started to say as she stood up.

"Rogue, please stay where you are. Logan, bring Quicksilver down to sub-level three," Charles said both aloud and in Wolverine's mind as Rogue sat down again.

_'On __my __way,' _Wolverine answered.

* * *

"Look, I already told you, I wasn't sneaking around," Quicksilver said the elevator door's opened. Charles watched as Quicksilver rushed away from Wolverine to Rogue's side; he had a large backpack on his back. "I was looking for the entrance," he insisted.

"That bag for me?" Rogue asked.

"Yes, Commodore," Quicksilver smirked as he saluting at her; Charles eyes widened at the title.

"You're the commodore?" Mr Creed and Miss Frost exclaimed in union, as Rogue exclaimed in anger, "He's called me that in front of other people?"

"Well, that's a yes," Miss Frost with a short laugh as Rogue let out groan.

"I am gonna kill him," Rogue shouted.

"I thought you two were forming so kind of a truce?" Quicksilver asked smugly as he twisted the empty seat next to her around and sat down in it, leaning his arms forward over the headrest of the chair.

"Fuck," Rogue exclaimed annoyed. "Well, I'm yelling at him, next time I see him," she said as she crossed her arms over her chest.

"You get to _yell_ at Magneto?" Quicksilver asked disbelief.

"Any time I want," Rogue muttered as Charles watched her gestured for the bag. Quicksilver gave it to her quickly.

"Man, I wish I was second in command," Quicksilver smirked. His comment was accompanied by Rogue sighing and a gasp from Storm.

"You're Magneto second in command?" Hank asked confused.

"No, not anymore," Rogue said quickly as she placed the backpack by her side.

"You were?" Wolverine asked enraged.

"I was _blackmailed_ into the position, Logan. He had Prof, god knows where. He had eight telepaths helping him carry out the emergence; holding the _entire_ town of Bayville captive. I didn't know what else ta do. I joined him to free everyone else," Rogue said yelled. "I _was_ his second in command, but I ain't anymore," she finished strongly. Wolverine growled.

"Logan please calm down," Charles said.

"Hmm- Rogue according to Magneto you still are his second in command," Quicksilver told Rogue. "And I just talked to him like five minutes ago," he said as Rogue rolled her eyes.

"Alright, lets get this over with. What other comments did Magneto tell you ta slip into the conversation?" Rogue asked annoyed.

"That you out-rank everyone in his organization; expect for him. If you give me an order I have to follow it. If you give me an order for the brotherhood_they_ have to follow it."

"Us as well," Miss Frost started to say, "If I had known yesterday that you're the commodore I would have followed that order you gave."

"What she said," Quicksilver said pointing at Miss Frost. "Also, that Gambit, Pyro, Colossus, Cargrill, and Mastermind will all be aware that you're the commodore by the end of the day and they will follow any order you give. He said that it was up to you to tell Sabertooth whatever you want to tell him, if anything. What else did he say?" he asked himself. "Oh yeah, Emma you're supposed to tell Betsy and your sister about Rogue being the commodore. I'm suppose to tell a whole bunch of other people. My job's to spread the word after this meeting," he said.

Magneto was giving her complete authority over his people? But why?

"I'm ordering you not too," Rogue said; surprising Charles. And why was Rogue playing along with it? "Emma you're my brother's girlfriend. Not my subordinate. You can do whatever the hell you want to... Although Magneto's probably gonna give you call a later tonight and order you ta do it anyway, and he's gonna ask for a full report on what we've all talked about here," Rogue said before rolling her eyes.

"Sorry," Mr. Creed said.

"It's alright, I've held back from going inta detail about some stuff. You ain't gonna tell him anything he doesn't already know," Rogue said. "Pietro, I know Magneto's gonna reorder you to tell everyone. And when he does, tell him I said if he's so hell bent on telling everyone in his organization he considers me his second in command he can go to the trouble of informing them himself. If he ain't willing to do that, than it ain't that important to him and we might as well forget he brought it up," she finished.

"I will deliver the message, my commodore," Quicksilver said; saluting at her again.

_'Perhaps __she's __hoping __he _will _choose __to __forget __the __offer __if __he __has __to __endure __the __work __of __telling __everyone?'_ Charles asked himself; but doubted that was the case.

* * *

"Ah- why commodore?" Pietro asked with a smile.

"It was a bad joke," Rogue sighed with a smile as she took off one of her gloves. "Pietro, don't move," she ordered before she put her figure onto his cheek. Rogue maintained the contact with Pietro for a few seconds before she broke the contact. Her eyes closed she pulled up Pietro's mind and entered. There were two things she wanted to know. The first was time consuming and it would have to wait until she was alone; she wanted to relive the conversation Magneto had with Pietro giving him these orders.

The second was much easier; she wanted to make sure that all the cameras Pietro had set up the other day were fake.

_'I __already __took __them __all __down, __Dad's __orders,'_ the fragment of Pietro told her. Rogue replayed what he had just said from her point of view; he was telling the truth. _'They're __all __in __the __bag,'_ he said.

_'Ya __sure __ya __didn't __miss __any?'_ she asked him as she opened her eyes and picked up the bag.

_'Positive,'_ he said as she opened it up. All the cameras were in a separate bag. She took it out and handed it to Pietro. "Bring these back to your father," she ordered.

"You got it," he said.

"If ya leave now you should just catch him before his meeting begins," Rogue said.

"Later," Pietro said before he rushed off with the bag into the elevator. Rogue let out a sigh as she took out the lab-top and placed it on the table. She took a deep, she had a lot of work to do and not enough time to do it. Having to explain all of this business about being second in command was only going to take more time from her planning.

_'Manipulative __jackass,'_ she thought as she turned on the computer.

* * *

"Rogue?" Charles asked calmly. Rogue let out a sigh as she glanced up from the computer screen.

"Magneto brought this up today for three very important reasons. The first is he's still apologizing ta me. Giving me this amount of authority ensures that no matter what happens between us I have recognized power within his organization that I'm free to ignore or exploit," she started to explain.

"The second is he's been wanting me to join him for a while now. This way both of us win. He's gets ta say I'm on his team and we all know that the X-Men are my first choice. I know that second in command might seem a bit excessive of a title for him to give me," she started to say.

_'It __most __certainly __does,'_ Charles thought to himself.

"Especially when we both know I have no real intention of using the power he's given me access to. But if I ever did decide ta join him for real the only difference would be my title. He's already promised me an equal partnership. He wants me to co-lead his organization with him," Rogue said as Charles eyes widened.

"Magneto must truly have faith in your abilities, Rogue," Ororo said before he could.

"He does," she smiled; Charles watched Rogue's eyes light up in joy. "No one's ever had as much faith in my ability to succeed before. He thinks- he knows that I'm capable of anything I put my mind to. He's told me that so many times, and he shown me that he's right. A lot of the ordeals he's put me though have been painful, I'm not gonna lie about that. But because of them I've had to ask myself so many hard questions about my ideology; what I believe in, why I believe it, what I'm willing ta do to protect those things, those people, that are important to me. A part of me is really _grateful_ to Magneto for teaching me that and so many other things about myself these past few months," she said as Charles continued to study her.

"Rogue," Miss Frost started to ask, "are you in love with Magneto?" she asked carefully. Rogue was silent for a moment; her eyes grew distance.

"...No," she said to Charles' relief. "...not yet," she added a moment later was nearly as comforting. "But my feelings for him are getting stronger. Before when I was taking lessons from him; when he was pretending to be the fragment, I could feel myself starting to fall in love with him. But he was pulling back from me," she said.

"He was?" Mr McCoy asked.

"Yeah, he was," she confirmed; but she offered nothing further. "Anyway, after I found out the truth, I was the one pulling away from him. I fought my feelings for him every chance I had. I got mad at myself for having them. I questioned their legitimacy. I asked myself whether I was a victim of _Stockholm __Syndrome_ or not," she said his eyes widened in surprise.

"What's Stockholm Syndrome?" Graydon asked. Rogue opened her mouth to speak.

"It's alright," Miss Frost said, "we'll look it up later."

"I'll explain the syndrome to anyone else who would like to know, later as well," Charles said.

"Thanks," Rogue said with a smile. "Well, when it comes to that, I've asked myself, I've brought it up to Magneto more than once," she said.

"What did he have to say on the matter?" Charles asked.

"He's denied it a few times. He' says the basis for our feelings for each other happened while he was pretending to be the fragment. That I wasn't afraid of the fragment at that point in time, so my feelings are legitimate. I don't think I agree with him completely on that. The whole situation is so damn complicated. But with where we're at right now, I don't really care about where my feelings come from anymore."

"That's the very definition-" Charles started to say.

"I know," Rogue interjected. "And I know I should care but I just don't. I know you're probably gonna have something to say about that Prof and I'll be willing to listen but," said said. She paused for one moment and let out a deep sigh.

"The third reason why he brought this up today is that I only have fours days to control the negotiations completely. Once we're in that restaurant with him anything can happen. The more terms I map out in my mind before we get there the better the end result will be for the X-Men. He wants ta keep me here in front of ya all explaining things for as long as possible. When I really need to be doing is working on the truce," she stressed holding eye contact with him, "for as much time as I can spare for the next few days," she finished. Rogue's eyes were on him. She was clearly waiting for him to respond.

Magneto's words kept echoing in his mind:_'I __suggest __you __allow __Rogue __to __do __most __of __the __arguing. __She's __far __more __skilled __at __it __than __you __are. __Especially, __when __I __am __her __opponent.'_

"...Go ahead. We'll talk on Sunday," Charles said after a moment.

"Thanks for understanding," Rogue said with a smile. She closed the top of the lab-top as she stood up.

"Rogue, I know this might seem absurd but-"Charles started to say as Rogue picked up the back pack and put it on.

"I have ta go ta school?" Rogue asked as Mr. Creed stood up.

"Yes," Charles confirmed.

"Okay," Rogue nodded. "I just wants things ta get back ta normal too," she said before she turned to her brother.

"Good luck, sis," Mr. Creed said Charles watched them hug. "Could you give me a call when this is all over?" he asked.

"Yeah, I'll let ya know how it went," she smiled as she pulled back and picked up the lab-top. "And you can tell me about meeting Kurt?" she asked happily.

"Absolutely," he grinned.

"I'll see ya all later," Rogue said before she walked away from the table and down the hall.

* * *

Again, thanks you all for reading! I hope you enjoyed it! Please review! :)


	49. Chapter 48

Hey everyone, it's my fic's three year anniversary! I'm so happy. My goal for the year was to write 24 chapters! Two a month, and with this chapter I've done just that! Woo-hoo! Thank you to everyone who's been reading this fic!

* * *

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Forty- Eight

Charles watched with a sigh as Rogue walked down the hallway. He was surprised when she stopped.

"Emma, Gray?" Rogue asked as she turned around.

"Yeah, sis?" Graydon asked.

"Would you mind- I mean, if Prof has any more questions about the emergence or the Commodore's part in it: would ya mind answering his questions?" she asked.

"Rogue, just order us too," Miss Frost said bluntly. Rogue let out a sigh.

"Answer any questions they have," she ordered. Graydon nodded at her with a smile. "Thanks," Rogue said; smiling slightly as she turned around and headed into the elevator.

"Rogue," Charles called out; before he could stop himself.

"Yeah?" she asked as she turned her head towards him.

"...Thank you," he said suddenly. Rogue stared at him for a brief second before a smile came to her face. Charles could feel everyone's eyes on him; waiting for him to explain. "I don't know the full extent to which I owe you thanks. I know now that in the past few weeks you have single-handedly saved my life twice. I don't know how many others. I have been horrified to hear the details of what you have endured on our behalf."

"All while performing a duty that is supposed to be mine," Charles continued. "For that I am truly sorry and I don't know how I will ever repay you for protecting everyone; for putting our freedom and happiness before your own. I am unbelievably grateful to you for everything you have done for this family," Charles said as he could feel the tears forming in his eyes.

"How could I do anything else?" Rogue asked with a smile.

"Quite easily, I'd imagine," he said darkly. "All you would have had to do was say yes to being with man we all know you're falling in love with. You could have ended your torment at any time with a single phone call," he said. Charles watched her eyes grow distant.

"...Yeah, I could have. Can't tell ya how many times I wanted to," she said with a short laugh. "But that ain't who I am," she shrugged. He smiled at that.

"...I wish I could be more helpful to you in this fight against him, I honestly do, but it appears that all I'm doing is stifling your efforts. Magneto has made it clear that he does not appreciate my efforts to assist you. If he had his way none of us would be aware of any of this," Charles said.

"If Magneto had his way, he never would have let me come back here. I'd still be his captive in Jericho," she said.

"What the hell is-" Wolverine started to say enraged.

"I'll explain that more on Sunday," Rogue added quickly.

"Whatever you need, Rogue," Charles said. "Please take all the time you need. And if there is _anything_ I can do to help, please, do not hesitate to ask," he finished.

"That's goes for me too," Hank said.

"And me," Ororo said with a small smile.

"...Whatever you need, kid," Wolverine said under his breath with his arms crossed over his chest.

"I know that I haven't answered everyone's questions, but thank you for trusting me enough ta know that I'm acting in the X-Men's best interest. I appreciate it," Rogue said with a smile before she headed into the elevator.

_'And your own, best interest, of course,' _the fragment laughed as she rolled her eyes._ 'Not that you haven't earned it, my girl. Because, you most certainly have,'_ he pointed out as she pressed a button on the lift's controls.

_'I know, it's just...I wish it didn't make everyone so damn uncomfortable,'_ she sighed. The fragment let out a short laugh.

_'After all the discomfort you have dealt with for their safely? They wouldn't be here if you hadn't interfered. They owe you their freedom. Charles owes you his _life_. Being with me makes you happy, does it not?'_ he asked.

_'You know it does,'_ she smiled.

'_If they can't understand and accept that simply truth after everything you've done for them then they don't _deserve_ your loyalty, Anna,' _he said strongly. Rogue took a deep breath. _'…But, I suppose that's a conversation for another day,'_ he said.

_'Yeah, it is,'_ she said.

* * *

The next few days flew by for Rogue as she worked on the truce. She hosted argument after argument in her mind with the fragment and by Friday afternoon she was done. She was still going to go everything one or two more times, but that could wait until the morning. The document was over twenty pages long and she could state with confidences that she had covered everything. She couldn't wait to meet with Magneto to make it all official. But first she was going to go enjoy watching a movie with her brother and just relax.

_'Rogue,' _she heard the Professor say in her mind as she called for the elevator,_ 'Quicksilver is here to speak with you,_' he informed her. Rogue let out a sigh.

_'Is he outside?'_ she asked before the doors opened. The Professor was in it.

"Yes, just outside the elevator,"he answered as she got in.

"Thanks, Prof," she told him as she pressed the appropriate button.

"The others are insisting that they come with us tomorrow," he told her as the doors closed. Rogue let out an annoyed sigh. She didn't need this.

"You know why that's a bad idea, Prof," she said.

"Yes, I do. I know you would rather go alone," he said.

"Yeah, I would but I made sure that you'd get to be there," she said as the lift started its ascent.

"Thank you," he said.

"Yeah, no problem, but did you explain that the less people are there the easier it is for me to deal with him?" she asked.

"Yes," he answered.

"And you told them that it's easier 'cause I can call him out on his bullshit?"

"My argument did not convince them," he said dryly.

"Did you remind them all that they agreed to give me whatever I need to make this all go through smoothly?" she asked annoyed.

"I believe that promise was the only thing that kept them from going to you instead," he said. She glanced down at him; he looked tired.

"Thanks for dealing with that for me," she said.

"You're welcome," he said. "But as you know Rogue, this truce is going to affect all of us. They feel they have the right to be present while the terms are being decided upon," he said.

"They have a point, expect the terms have _already_ been decided upon," she said. The Professor glanced up at her confused. "That's what I've been doing the past few days. That's why I manipulated Magneto into giving me more time. And that's why he was upset once he realized what I had done:_ proud_ and upset," she said.

"He's proud when you deceive him?" he asked curiously.

"Yeah," she answered as the doors to the elevator opened. Rogue exited the elevator to see Pietro waiting; his foot was tipping a mile a minute. She could tell he was bored. "We'll have ta-" Rogue started to say.

"Finally," Pietro exclaimed. In half a second he was right in front of her "That's from Magneto," he told her holding out a letter for her. She took it. "Magneto said that your agreement-" Pietro started to say.

"Didn't say anything against written words, as opposed to spoken, so this letter and any response I give to him through you is not going to jeopardize our rapport," she said dryly as she rolled her eyes.

"Yeah," Pietro said looking at her with a raised eyebrow. "That's _exactly _what he said," Pietro said bewildered. Rogue shrugged as she opened the letter.

She read to herself: _"Dear Anna. I realized shortly after we spoke last that there is an issue I have been meaning to bring to your attention. What that issue is I will not state in this letter. It is something I have lied to you about in the past: for that I apologize. But in my defense, given your mental state, during the emergence, I thought it best to keep that revelation from you for your own sake. After the emergence, I must admit, that it slipped my mind. I expect that you will reprimand me for both my judgment and folly, but so be it. Once you feel you are ready to hear about this, please, just ask, and I will inform you all about this issue._" It was signed, _"Your bastard."_

Rogue laughed softy as she finished reading.

"Hey, what's so funny?" Pietro asked as he ran to Rogue's side. She closed the letter as promptly as she could but she wasn't fast enough. "Your _bastard_?" he asked confused.

"It's a joke, Pietro, between me and him," she explained.

"Another one? What is going _on _between you too?" he asked frustrated.

"That question ya gotta ask your, father. He wouldn't want me answering it for him and I respect Magneto enough not ta try and come I in between ya all's relationship," she said. Pietro just stared at her. She rolled her eyes. She was surprised when he grabbed onto her arm and pulled her a few steps away from the Professor.

"So, which side are you on?" he whispered.

"Both, I guess," she responded. "It's complicated," she shrugged.

"My dad said the same thing," Pietro commented.

"Must be true then," she huffed.

"If you were going to get so close with my dad you might as well have stayed in the brotherhood," he said with a laugh.

"After what Mystique did to me? No fucking way," she exclaimed. Pietro looked at her with a raised eyebrow. "How have I never told you this?" she asked herself.

"You switched sides remember. We stopped talking," he reminded her.

"Right," she said shaking her head. Having all the fragments in her mind was a good way to get information, but sometimes even she couldn't track of what the fragments knew and what their live counterparts were unaware of. "So, I first moved to Bayville thinking that the X-Men were Mutant hunting,"

"What?" Pietro laughed. "Them? Mutant hunters?" he asked in disbelief.

"Yeah, I know," Rogue sighed annoyed. "But both Mystique and Irene told me that. They were my mothers, I believed them. I don't have to tell ya how stupid that lie was. I absorbed Mystique to find out the truth and I learned they lied ta me, do you know Mystique did?" she asked.

"No idea. What did she do?" he asked quickly.

"She threw a boulder at me sending me off a cliff and into a river. I nearly died. If the X-men hadn't been there who knows if me and Scott would be okay," she said.

"Holy shit," Pietro said. "She tried to kill you of calling her out on a lie?" he asked.

"Yeah, she fucking did," she said annoyed.

"Really? On _that_ lie. With your powers don't you, like, get information or something?" he asked. Rogue nodded. "Then how did they expect you _not_ to find out?" he laughed. Rogue's eye widened. Irene had to have known she would figure it out. "It's like they wanted you to join the x-men," he laughed. Rogue's eyes met the Professor's. He looked just as shocked as she did.

"Yeah maybe," Rogue muttered to herself.

"Quicksilver is there any other reason you needed to come aside from delivering that letter?" the Professor asked as he moved closer to them.

"Oh, right, a response," Rogue muttered. "Look, just tell Magneto I said, I know he's got the memory of a goldfish but, I ain't gonna hold it against him," she said with a small smile. Pietro raised an eyebrow.

"Seriously? _That's_ what you want me to tell him?" he asked with a laugh.

"Yup," she said. "You got it or do you need me to repeat it for you?"

"No, I'll remember," he said. "Later, Commodore," he said with a salute. They both watched him run off. With a sigh Rogue walked over and sat down on the edge of the gazebos. Her mind was reeling.

"She had to have known," she mumbled to herself in disbelief. "That stupid lie was pro-" she started to say out loud. '_Who idea was it?'_ she demanded to know as she closed her eyes. For the first time in months she allowed her mother's fragment to front and center in her mind.

'_It was both of ours. We came up with it together,'_ Mystique answered. _'Both of us felt that you might join the x-men if you thought they were a respectable team.' _

'_You were wrong. I would've sided with_ family_ if either of ya felt like acting like we were one,'_ she thought enraged.

'_Rogue,'_ Mystique started to say; her tone sounded desperate. She knew what her mother was about to say. She had had to listen to this speech too many times already. How she was sorry. How she was only trying to protect her. How much she loved her and wished they could have a good relationship, if only she would leave the x-men and come back to her, come home…

'_Get back with the others,' _Rogue ordered as she felt tears running down her face.

'_But, Rogue,'_ Mystique tried to say as Rogue started to push her back. Mystique was fighting her this time.

'_Raven, you heard your daughter. Return to the others,_' Magneto ordered. She let out a sigh as she felt both Magneto and Mystique fade to the back of her mind. She opened her eyes a moment later as she brushed tears off her face. She watched the Professor open his mouth to speak.

'I don't wanna talk about it," she said quickly. "I don't even wanna _think_ about either of them, right now. Where the hell was I?" she asked.

"_You_ have already decided upon the terms of the truce," he said gently.

"Right, Max is gonna argue a point or two from it, but he knows I've already had these arguments with him this week. And he knows that what's written in the draft is already a compromise that me and the fragment agreed on. He's _apologizing_, he not gonna make a big deal out of the little things as long as he gets a portion of what he wants," she said.

"And what does that mean exactly? What are you offering to give him?" he asked alarmed.

"One day of my time: Saturdays," she answered. "And I'll keep the title of second in command," she said rolling her eyes. "I'll be both an X-Men and his Commodore. But I'll be the commodore in name only. I ain't gonna use that power and Max isn't gonna force me to," she said.

"For now," the Professor pointed out darkly. Rogue let out a sigh.

"Yeah, for now," she said sadly. "...I'll deal with that when he starts being an ass again. But right now, I don't have to think about that yet and I don't want too. I wanna get this done with and then I just wanna relax for a while. Fucking breath," she exclaimed. "…Maybe that selfish of me," she started to say.

"Selfish?" the Professor asked astonished as they made eye contact. "Rogue, it would have been selfish if you had left with Magneto and forgot about the rest of us: if you had put your peace of mind before ours. In all that you've told me I can't recall one instance in which you've done that," he said. "You have done nothing wrong," he stressed.

"...Not even sleeping with Max," she asked. The comment clearly caught him by surprise. She watched his eyes widened. He took a deep breath as he looked away from her. She gave him a moment to absorb the information.

"...Prof," she said after a minute had passed, "I'm happy when I'm with him. I really am. I feel safe and loved. And there's something I wanna tell you, just so you know. I'll say it once, and I won't bring it up again unless you ask me about it, okay?" she asked. He glanced back down at her and nodded. She paused giving the Professor a moment to brace him-self.

"Sex with that man is _amazing_ and I wanna do it with him again and again," she smiled. She hesitated at his revolted expression. "...And he also still wants to help me get control over my powers. That's what we'll be doing on Saturday's. Can you handle that?" she asked. "Can you watch me leave to go be with him knowing what we're gonna do and still welcome me back into your home?"

"_Our_ home," he corrected immediately as he made eye contact. "This is your home, Rogue, you will always have a place here," he told her.

"Thanks," she said softly with a smile. "...So, is that a yes?" she asked. He let out a sigh.

"I don't believe I'll ever be comfortable with this," he said.

"I'm not asking you to be," she shrugged.

"And I still wish to discuss the possibly of Stockholm Syndrome. If that is the basis of your feelings for him than I do not wish for him to have more time to strengthen that corrupt bond," he said. She paused for a moment. She knew he was going to bring this up again.

"Maybe this is a mistake," she started to say, "Or maybe it's gonna be the most rewarding relationship of my life. Or maybe he's gonna break my heart... I know that you're only trying to protect me. That you don't wanna see me get taken advantage of and I appreciate that, Prof. But think for a second about what that phrase implies... ," she said as she watched the Professor take another deep breath.

"In order for someone to be taken advantage of, there has to be so kind of _deception: _some truth their hiding: some _lie_ they've told to keep the other person in the dark. But me and Max's relationship?" she asked with a smile. "His mind is gonna be an open book for me. I'm gonna have access to _everything_. He ain't gonna be able to lie to me. Both of us are gonna know that. I mean right now, I have this letter in my hand," she said glancing down at it. She paused.

"Would you mind reading it?" she asked holding it out to him. He looked at it for a moment before he took it. The sat in silence for a minute as the Professor read.

"What do you think he lied about?" the Professor asked her.

"I'm not sure," she said. "But whatever it is, it's gonna make me mad. He knows that. It's why he sent the letter once he remembered about it. He didn't want me to think he was trying to hide anything. He's being really careful. He knows he fucked up. He used to throw apologies around. Just say the words, but they meant nothing and we both knew it."

"I remember this one time I asked him if he was sorry enough to stop. He said no and I told him that his apology wasn't worth shit cause of that. But that ain't the case anymore," she smiled. "He's not just telling me what I wanna hear ta help me calm down. He's actually taking action, going out his way to make his apology real. Things are really changing for the better; between me and him. For the x-men," she said. "We won't have to worry about Magneto or the brotherhood anymore. We can just live our lives in peace. Isn't that a good thing?" she asked.

"Rogue, of course, it is," he said.

"… Look, my point, what I was getting at, is that I know what I'm getting into with Magneto. I understand the risks. I am fully aware of what's he capable of, what's he's done, what he's willing to do. I know his faults,_ all _of them. And despite all that, I ain't running away. I _want_ to give his and my relationship a shot. What I'm really asking from ya right now is to respect my right to make that decision for myself; mistake or not," she said. The Professor let out another sigh.

"When you put it like, how can I say no?" he asked; he sounded tired.

"You really can't," Rogue smiled. "It's kinda why I asked like that. I mean, I meant every word I just said," she added quickly.

"I know you did," he said with a sigh. There was silence between them for a moment. "...Alright ...alright," he said finally.

"Really?" she asked stunned. She hadn't thought any argument would be able to convince him.

"Yes," he sighed. "I can't believe I'm saying this, but yes... I just hope you don't regret this," he said.

"Me too… but it's my decision to regret," she said with a smile. "Thank you for respecting that," she said. He nodded, almost dismissively. "Prof, _really_," she said as she made eye contact with him, "it means a lot to me," she stressed. He held her gaze for a moment.

"...You're welcome," he said after a moment.

"...Look," she said changing the subject, "if Ororo, Mr. McCoy, and Logan_ really_ wanna come tomorrow then okay. But I need to go talk to Max about it first, _alone_," she said. "He's apologizing, so he's gonna say yes. But I need ta, at least, make it _look_ like I'm asking," she told him with a smirk. The Professor let out a soft laugh.

"Very well," he said.

* * *

The next afternoon Rogue got out of the car to see Magneto standing in front of his restaurant. There were only two cars parked in front of it. She guessed they had the place to themselves. Rogue threw the backpack, containing the lap-top, over her shoulder as she watched Mr. McCoy helping the Professor getting into his wheelchair. Ororo exited the car as Logan got off his bike.

_'He is not gonna be happy about this,' _she thought as she took a deep breath. As she stepped closer to him she could see his eyebrow raised. He was clearly wondering what the others were doing here. "Hi, Max" she said softly as she studied him.

"Hello, Anna," he said as he took a step closer to her.

"Could we go inside for a minute?" she asked him.

"Alone?" he asked mockingly as he held the door for her. "I didn't think Charles had the stomach to allow such a thing," he said as she walked passed him into the restaurant. She just shrugged as she heard him walked behind her. He didn't press the issue any further as they walked in silence through the restaurant, into the large back room and into his office. She placed her backpack on one of the chairs facing his desk. She let out a sigh as she turned to face him.

There was a moment of silence as the two of them searched each other's gazes.

He walked up to her and cupped her face. She felt her cheeks flush with color as he leaned down and gave her a quick peck on the lips; his powers flowing into her. He started to pull away but she pressed her lips into his: prolonging the kiss as she put her hands on his chest. She heard him groan against her lips as she deepened the kiss. He put his hand around her waist; pulling her up against him.

The first thing she did with was gain access to the X-Men's electro-chemical singles. She had no intention of using them but if she had access then Magneto would have to fight her for control if the situation went south. She only needed to hold her advantage for a few seconds to teleport everyone to safety. In that respect she felt secure.

Next, she scanned the building with his powers. She found what she was looking for: there was a mutant inhibitor field in the basement of the restaurant. As far as she could tell, there wasn't any DNA sample loaded into it but she still wasn't willing to take that chance. She used his powers to take control over the machine. As she was about to rip it apart Magneto broke the kiss. He stared down at her incredulously as he moved his hand from her cheek to her shoulder. She had been caught.

"...Ya can't blame a girl for being overcautious. Not after everything you've put me through," she explained breathlessly. Magneto stared at her for a moment. She watched a smirk appear on his face before he started to chuckle.

"No, I suppose, I can't," he chuckled. "But Anna, you could just ask," he said.

"Okay, promise me," she said.

"...You have my word I will not use that machine on you today _without_ your consent," he said.

"Thanks," she said.

"…Always, my girl," he whispered into her ear.

"Then why did you include the word today in that promise," she asked with a smirk. He backed away from her ear and stared down at her; he was clearly annoyed with the comment. "I'm just teasing ya, Max," she said as she looped her arms around his neck. "Thank you, for everything you've done for me in this apology. I appreciate _all_ of it," she said earnestly. He let out a sigh.

"You're welcome, Anna," he said before their lips met for another kiss. "…How have you been the past few days?" he asked.

"I've been busy, but okay," she said. "How've you been?" she asked.

"My schedule has been hectic as well. How far did you get into the draft?" he asked.

"I finished it," she told him with a smile.

"From you, Anna Marie, I expected nothing less," he said. She smiled at that.

"…Do ya mind the others being here?" she asked.

"Yes," he commented dryly.

"But ya gonna deal with it?" she asked.

"...I want to say no," he said.

"But ya ain't gonna?" she asked. He met her eyes.

"Will I finally be finished apologizing for past offenses?" he asked.

"As long as you don't _repeat_ any of them, then yeah, you will be," she answered.

"... Fair enough," he said thoughtfully before she stepped away from him.

"Would ya mind going to get everyone while I print out the draft?" she asked as she picked up her bag. "Or I could show you where the files are first and then-," she started to suggest.

"It's alright, Anna. I'll return with your family in a moment," he said before he exited the room.

* * *

Magneto walked outside of his restaurant to find Charles and his entourage waiting. They all looked a bit nervous.

"Magneto, I realize this isn't what you and Rogue agreed to-" he started to say.

"That's hardly necessary, Charles. You're welcome to join us. Please come inside, all of you," he said pleasantly before he turned. He heard Charles let out a sigh in relief as he turned to walk back into restaurant.

"Where's Rogue?" he heard Mr. McCoy ask as they started to walk through the restaurant.

"In my office printing out the truce," Magneto answered.

"Your office?" Miss. Munroe asked.

"Yes, this is _my_ restaurant: one of many," he answered as they entered the back room. Rogue glanced up at him with a small smile. She was holding copies of the truce in her hands.

"So, let's get started," Rogue said she walked closer to them. She handed him a copy of the draft. He opened it and started to read as she handed copied to everyone else.

The first thing that caught his attention was the note at the top of the page. It read: _"Anything written in German is only in your copy of the truce, Max."_ He glanced up at her with a raised eyebrow.

"Keep reading," she ordered. He turned back to the page. She was asking to meet every Saturday from ten in the morning to ten in the evening; as long as his schedule allowed him. He was allowed to cancel their Saturdays, but she wasn't. She was, however, allowed to ask him if he would be willing to cancel.

There was actually a note in German that read: '_I reserved the right not to speak to you or touch you at any time, for any reason.'_ The truce was only granting that they would be in the same room as one another for that time.

He couldn't help but chuckle as he took a seat to the far left of the table. Rogue took a seat next to him and Charles next to her: Miss Munroe next to him: Mr. McCoy next to her: and finally Wolverine next to him.

Twelve hours a week of uninterrupted time with his girl. He had no arguments with that issue. However, he was not looking forward to debate any of x-men would spark about allowing them so much time alone. She was also demanding that they spend at least three hours a week working on control over her powers. For this, she was allowed to cancel their training sessions, but he was not. He, however, was allowed to ask her to consider spending less time on her training but she had the final word on the matter.

Any other time they spent together per week was up to their mutual digression. However, he was not allowed to come to the institute's grounds without her or the Professor agreeing to it first. And he was not allowed to enter the mansion without the Professor's permission.

He flipped though the next few pages. There was a long list of things he was being asked never to do again.

'_Nothing unreasonable,'_ he thought as he read though her demands. Mostly it consisted of things he had done to her and the x-men before. Kidnapping Anna Marie Creed or any other person she considers family without her approval, blackmailing Anna Marie Creed or any other person she considers family without her approval, threatening Anna Marie Creed or any other person she considers family without her approval, attack any person Anna Marie Creed considers family (Although he the x-men attacked him or any of his people, he and his people had the right to defend themselves with non-lethal force)

He was being asked to promise not to attack the mansion or any other resident someone Anna Marie Creed considers family without her approval, occupying the mansion or any other resident someone Anna Marie Creed considers family, etc

The list went on and on for nearly ten pages. The wording was carefully chosen, he could tell. It was iron clad.

The one paragraph that stood out to him, of course, was the note in German: "_You will never threaten, enact, or mention telepathically enslaving anyone I consider family without my approval. You think of yourself as mutant kind's leader, their savior who will never allow them to suffer through genocide. Why would you want any of them to suffer through enslavement? Just because none of them would be aware that their free will has been stolen, does not make it right. I know you know that, Max."_ He read over that paragraph a few times. On his third reread Rogue glanced at his paper.

"You okay with that?" she asked.

"Of course,' he asked her. She smiled at him.

"Then turn the page," she teased. He chuckled as he did as she instructed.

* * *

Before leaving the institute; Charles had asked told his associates the summation of what Rogue and he had talked about the day before. They had agreed to host their own arguments telepathically before bring anything up a loud. Charles Xavier glanced up as he heard the sound of Rogue and Magneto laughing together. This was followed by Wolverine growling under his breath.

'_Logan, please, you know how sensitive this situation is,'_ Charles projected into his mind. The growling stopped. He held back a sigh as he turned back to his own copy. On his first read through he couldn't think of anything to comment on.

'_Charles,'_ Hank thought to him, _'twelve hours a week, seems a bit much doesn't it?'_ he asked.

'_I agree, but I already told Rogue I would respect her right to see who she pleases; including Magneto,'_ Charles told him.

'_Charles, she you're ward, isn't she? She's the teenager. You're the adult. If you wish to forbid her from seeing a man-'_ Ororo started to think.

'_If this instance, I would agree with you, Ororo. But objecting to this, here, could very well start a war. Or Magneto might just kidnap Rogue again out of frustration with the rest of us. Rogue has made it clear that we would not be able to find her if that happened. I know Rogue may seem relaxed but this is still a very dangerous situation. Any comment could set him off,' _Charles said darkly.

'_Looks like he's in a good enough mood,' _Wolverine said irate.

'_Nevertheless, after everything she has fought though to keep her-self and the rest of us safe, I am not willing to jeopardize Rogue's freedom over a few hours a week. A few hours she _wishes_ to spend with him. Rogue has made that very clear to me as well,'_ he thought.

'…_So, we do nothing?'_ Hank asked.

'_Again,'_ Wolverine added infuriated.

'_Yes, I'm afraid so,'_ Charles answered.

* * *

Magneto continued to read the truce. There was a long list of events Rogue was committing to never tell anyone else about. It included: details about the inner workings of his powers (although she reserved the right to teach another control over their powers using any theories she had learned from him or the use of his powers) details about his bank accounts (she was also promising never to use any of the money he had stored in various banks without his approval), business locations, base locations, and any other buildings he owned. "Unless Anna Marie Creed has Max Eisenhardt's approval," was a phrase that was used constantly.

"Anna," he said. "There is one change I would like to make," he said as he used his powers to bring a pen to his hand.

"Yeah?" she asked as she turned towards him.

"Here," he said pointed to the draft.

"Page twenty-six," Rogue supplied for everyone else's benefit. He was actually on page twenty-eight in his copy but he supposed the x-men did not need to be aware of that. He saw them quickly turning the pages before he glanced down at his paper.

"Here, where you're agreeing not to use my funds without my approval. I'd like to change that sentence to read: 'Anna Marie Creed will not take funds out of any of Max Eisenhart's bank accounts without the approval of Max Eisenhart's or the fragment of Max Eisenhart that resided in Anna Marie Creed's mind," he said.

"I could really take advantage of that-" she started to say.

"You could, but we both know you won't. Anna, I'm a _billionaire_," he stressed. "And if you'll allow it, I'd _like_ to dote on you. But I also wish to make certain that in the event of an unforeseen emergency you have access to funds that may assist you. As long as you have the fragment's approval then do as you please with my money," he finished.

"Are you sure?" she asked. He nodded. "Okay, write it in," she said happily. He proceeded to do so before he continued to read.

At one point the list of information she was commenting to keep between the two them just consisted of dates. With this he now had certainly that whole blocks of his life were off limits to Charles. He read over those pages for a few moments. She hadn't missed a thing. He chuckled when they got to the more resent dates: the times they had spent together. She had written in German: _"I will speak freely about what we have talked about and what we have done in the past, present, and future to anyone I chose too (Not including any of the sensitive information noted below). If you have a problem with me using this freedom then as a couple we are never going to work and you might as well let me know now before we pursue our relationship any further."_

"Well?" Rogue asked him; she had been reading over his shoulder.

"I have no issue with anything written on this page," he said before he glanced down at her lips. "Pretend I just kissed you," he said in German. She laughed in response.

"Keep reading," she smirked in English.

"Yes, Commodore," he chuckled. She let out a short laugh.

"I should punch you for naming me your second in command without talking ta me about it first," she said.

"I had promised not to speak with you until today. It was a pressing issue. I found it could not wait," he argued jokingly.

"Bullshit," she laughed. "Bull, fucking, shit, Max," she said with a smile. He chuckled.

"Are you entirely again the ti?" he started to ask.

"No, it's fine. I'll keep the damn title," she said as he chuckled again. "Did you send Pietro to tell everyone I'm the Commodore, or did you do it?"

"I took care of it myself, as you requested," he answered. "It occurred to me after Pietro returned with your message, the first one," he added. "That if I had sent him to inform everyone that they might have thought that Pietro was playing some kind of a joke on them. And if I was unreachable, for whatever reason, then you would not be able to use that power I had giving you because of their disbelief," he said.

"Well, it's a good thing _you_ thought of that," Rogue said. He glanced over at her; an annoyed expression on his. So, he had made a mistake. She had caught him before that mistake might have cost them anything. "I can't imagine how long it must have taken you to go over _all_ the pros and cons of that extremely important decision," she said mockingly as he let out an annoyed sigh. He turned back to the draft in his hands, deciding to ignore her comments. She was right he knew. He was willing to let her have a few comments. She was clearly enjoying making poking fun at his mistake. He turned past all the pages listing dates from his life and found himself on the last page.

"… It's not like you _rushed_ it or anything," Rogue said a few moments later.

"Are you done patronizing me yet?" he asked irritated.

"I'm gonna be honest, Max. I got a few more of these up my sleeve. You know, I'm pretty sure I spent a good, thirty-forty minutes thinking of things to say about your decision. Which has got ta be, at least, twice as much time as you spent making it," she laughed. He let out another sigh.

"Are you done?" he asked dryly. "Is there anything else you would like to add? Anything at all?" he asked.

"…You're a dumbass when you don't have time ta think," she smirked.

"I'm aware," he responded; which was met with Rogue laughing, "that's why I usual allot a necessary amount of time to strategize. It's why I gave us the extra three days before the emergence to rework that plan," he said.

"I thought it was because you wanted to get me into bed," Rogue laughed in German.

"That was well," he chuckled as he glanced over at her. She laughed softly.

"Keep reading," she ordered. "Oh, hey you're on the last page," she said as she glanced down at his copy. His eyes followed hers to his copy. It was a signature page: meant for both him and Rogue to sign.

Above the signatures there was one more paragraph in German: _"If you and I ever decide to stop seeing each other, the terms in this truce will still be respected until Max Eisenhart and Charles Xaiver set aside time to discus another truce. I hope that if our relationship doesn't work out that you won't instantly want to take control over the x-men. I hope that you would respect and still care about me enough not to want to hurt me or the people I care about. So, please, if having my trust ever stops mattering to you than don't go crazy and destroy the truce out of anger. Every X-Man is still a mutant. And even if they don't want it, they could benefit from an alliance with you and yours. Please give them that option. I promise not to get in the way of any future alliances you might form with Charles Xavier"_

"I do not foresee that ever being necessary," Magneto said in German.

"Of course, you don't _now_, but if that ever happens I need to know that you won't hurt any of them. I don't know if we're going to get married, like you've thought about, or if this is just temporary. But what I do know is that I want to be with you, right now, because that's what's going to make me happy. But I don't want to be emotionally blackmailed into staying in this relationship. Do you want that for me?" she asked in German.

"No, of course not, Anna," he answered immediately.

"Then I need you to agree to that, so I don't have to worry about it anymore," she said. He let out a sigh.

"Very well," he said. She smiled before he turned back to the first page of the draft and went through it one more time. He was satisfied with what was written. He called the pen back to his hand and signed the last page.

"You're signing it?" Charles asked in disbelief.

"Yes," Max answered as he turned the paper of to Rogue. "You're turn, my girl," he said as he held out the pen to her. She glanced down at the pen for a moment.

"If we do this now then I gonna need to go home first. If I ain't then people might think you've kidnapped again and threatened Prof and then into silence. I need to let everyone know I'm fine. I'd have to meet you at the Café later: like five o'clock. We'll have about five hours this Saturday. We'll start the full twelve next week," she told him. He let out a chuckled.

"Agreed," he said with a smile before she took the pen from him.

"Hey, wait a minute," Wolverine started to protest.

"Wolverine, if you would please turn to the last page of the truce?" Max asked pleasantly. Wolverine growled under his breath as he turned to the last page. "You will see that there are lines for two signatures: not three, not six, just two. And those lines are meant for my-self and Anna Marie. She is the one who prepared this truce. She spent _days_ on it and it's very well done. I made one change, you all heard, but I heard no objections as we did so."

"I do not feel the need to change another word of what Rogue has written in our agreement. So, yes, Anna," he said turned back to Rogue, "please sign, and then we can both get on with our lives," he said with a smirk. Magneto watched her laugh for a moment before she looked up at the Professor.

"Prof, you've read through the truce twice already and you haven't said anything. I'm gonna sign it," she told him. Charles nodded with a sigh. He watched her sign the truce, flip back to the first page and hand him the truce. "That's your copy," she said as she glanced up at him. "Mine's up here," she said pointing to her forehead.

"Just to be clear, I can stop apologizing now/" Magneto asked.

"Yup," she smiled as she stood up.

"I'll see you around five then, my girl," he smiled as he stood up. He leaned in and kissed her forehead_. 'I love you,'_ he thought as his mind flowed into hers.

"I know," Rogue muttered as he pulled away. He smiled at that.

* * *

Thats it for this chapter! For anyone who is interested I've posted a new story. Individual Repartee! It's going to be a series of one shots detailing the lives of some people from this fic. The first chapter is all about Amelia Voght and her wayward home for children. Feel free to check it out!


	50. Chapter 49

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Forty-Nine

Rogue sat with every member of the institute's household in the kitchen. The Professor had just finished explaining the situation; which in her option had taken entirely too long. It was nearly four- thirty. She had to leave soon. There had been so many questions about the truce. The Professor had vaguely told them some details. He hadn't mentioned that Rogue was now Magneto's second in command; interestingly enough. Were they keeping that a secret?

"So, everyone please know, that no one in this house is in any danger from Magneto or any of his associates," the Professor reiterated strongly.

"So, everything's okay? Just like that?" Evan asked in disbelief. Rogue took a deep breath as she pushed back the onslaught of traumatic memories begging to be relived. She restrained herself from saying anything out loud. They weren't supposed to know everything she had gone through.

'_Just like that,'_ Rogue repeated darkly to herself; she could feel her own eyes narrow.

"Yes, everything is fine, now," the Professor answered.

"Rogue, you okay?" Kurt asked her; pulling her out of her thoughts. She glanced up at her brother and smiled.

"I'm fine," she reassured him.

"So, unless there are any other questions," the Professor started to say before pausing. No one asked anything. "Then you are dismissed," he said before people started to stand. Almost instantly several conversations started at once. The sound of chatter, and laughter over took the room.

"While we have everyone here," Ororo started to say loudly, "Bobby would you help me hand out the mail?" she asked.

"Sure," Bobby said as he took a pile from here. "Hey, Sam, I think your mom sent cookies again," he smiled.

"Really?" Sam asked happily.

"Sounds like it," Bobby smirked as he shook the box near his ear.

"Hey, cut it out. I wanna eat those," Sam exclaimed as he jumped out of his seat. Bobby ran across the room laughing as he Sam chased him.

"Kitty, there's a letter here for you," Ororo said as she handed it out to Kitty.

"Thanks," Kitty said as she phased through the table to get it. Ororo handed out other pieces of mail as the Professor, Mr. McCoy, Logan and some of the other students started to make their way towards the elevator. "It's from my mom," Kitty smiled as she showed the letter to Kurt.

"Cool," Kurt said as he sat down next to her. Rogue stood up and headed for the elevator.

She turned as she heard Sam scream out "Got ya." For a brief second Rogue felt envious. She dismissed the feeling as quickly as it had entered her mind. Given who her mothers were, why would she want to receive anything from them?

Rogue let out a soft laugh as she saw that Sam had managed to grab the box out of Bobby's grasp. Rogue let out a blissful sigh as she watched the antics of her family. This is what she had fought so hard for; their peace of mind and happiness. But now finally it was her turn to just rela-

"Rogue, you got a postcard," Bobby said as he held it out to her it to her.

"Huh?" she asked as she glanced over at him.

"Postcard. You have one. Here," Bobby said as he put it in her hands. She grasped hold of it as he let go and moved on to handing out more mail.

"Thanks," she muttered as she stared down at the front of the postcard. Her raised eyebrow as she read: "Greetings from Genosha."

'_Where the hell is Genosha?'_ she asked herself as she flipped the card over.

She froze as she recognized the handwriting; it was Irene's. Her eyes stared down at the postcard, her expression emotionless as she read: _"Dear Rogue, one day soon everything I have and will do to you, everything I still plan to do for you and mutant kind, will make sense to you. Your mother, Irene." _Rogue took a deep breath as she pushed back her feelings.

'…_Keep it together, girl,'_ she thought as she repressed the urge the breakdown. She quickly folded the car in half and put it in her pants pocket.

'_Anna?'_ the fragment of Magneto asked concerned as she took a deep breath.

'_I just need to be alone for a while,"_ she told him as she turned from the room.

"Hey, Rogue, like, where are you going?" she heard her roommate ask. For a brief moment she considered telling both of them about the postcard.

'_There is no need to feel guilty about requiring time alone. You do not have to share your_ _troubles. You have the freedom to keep them to yourself.'_ he told her.

Rogue turned back to Kitty with the fake smile she had perfected over the months and said, "I'm just gonna go relax for a little while, before I have ta go meet up with Magneto. I'll see ya all later."

"Okay," Kitty smiled.

"See you later, sis," Kurt smiled.

"Later, Kurt," Rogue smiled before she turned back out of the room and walked towards the elevator. Rogue took a deep breath, her foot tapping impatiently against the floor as she waited for the elevator to arrive.

"Ya nervous about your lesson with Magneto?" Sam asked. She glanced over at him. He was holding a plastic box filled with cookies.

"Not really," Rogue huffed honestly as the elevator door finally opened.

"I think I would be," Sam said as they walked into the lift.

"Most people would be," Rogue commented as he pressed a button on the controls. She leaned forward and pressed a different button.

"I guess you ain't most people then, huh?" he asked with a soft laugh.

"No, I ain't," she said bitterly as he reached into his box and pulled out a cookie.

"Ya want one?" he asked as he held out the box to her. She glanced at the box surprised.

"I- …No thanks," she said.

"Ya sure? My mom made them," he said as she felt a sting of anger at the mention of mothers. "Ya can't go wrong with my mom's cooking," he laughed

"I'm sure," she snapped harshly as the doors to the elevator opened. She instantly regretted her tone. He was just being nice. "…Sam, I'm sorry. You didn't deserve that. Thanks for offering but no thanks," she said to him. She let out a sigh as she quickly marched out of the elevator; not giving Sam a chance to comment.

There was no one else in the hallway, so she ran into the first empty workout room she saw.

'_Anna, do you wish to talk about it?'_ the fragment asked concerned as she walked up to a punching bag.

"No…" she said strongly. "She has no right to call herself my mother," Rogue yelled out in anger as she started to attack the punching bag in front of her with all of her strength: her fists and legs taking turns to assault the bag.

* * *

Charles Xavier sat with a couple of his students in the kitchen area. Ororo and Hank were making dinner. With only twenty minutes left on the cooking time, they were hoping to eat by six pm. Charles glanced over at the phone as he heard it ring. He picked it up and it put it to his ear.

"Xavier Institute," Charles answered.

"Ah, Charles," he heard Magneto start to say, "I was wondering if you happened to know where Rogue is?" he asked as Charles' eyes widened.

* * *

'_Anna, I know you're angry and you have every right to be, but please stop this before you put yourself back in the infirmary,'_ the fragment beseeched, yet again. Rogue slowly staggered back from the punching bag exhausted. Drenched in sweat, she took shallow breaths attempting to regain her composure.

'_Feel better?' the_ fragment asked dryly.

'_Ask me that again when I can breath,'_ she thought before her let her body collapse to the floor: her eyes closing. She coughed violently as her back hit the floor.

'_Why do you do this to yourself?'_ he asked. Even after all of that she was still on the verge of tears.

'_I don't wanna cry anymore,'_ she told him as she bit back tears.

'_Perhaps, you need to,'_ he offered gently. '_It's perfectly healthy to feel these emotions in response to everything you have been forced to endure but the way you have been repressing it. I understand you felt you had too to keep going but now we are at peace. Now is the time when you can start to confront these emotions and work to put some of it behind you.'_

'… _Max, I just- … I need it to stop hurting so damn much,_' she thought as she bit back tears.

'_Give it time, Anna, and take solace in the company of those of _truly_ care about you,'_ he told her.

"_Oh, fuck,"_ she exclaimed in a panic as she sat up, "what time is it?"

'_Past five, most definitely,'_ he answered. _'How much so I am unaware,'_ he added.

"Fuck," she yelled out as she failed to keep her tears back. "Fuck… I only had to do one more fucking thing today and I," she mumbled as she drew up her knees and rested her head on them. "Fuck," she screamed; letting all of her anguish out. She hugged her knees to her chest, needing the comfort as she cried.

A moment later there was a knock at the door.

"Rogue, are you alright?" the Professor asked. Rogue took a deep breath as she prepared herself to stand.

'_Anna, you're already late, a few more minutes will hardy matter. Finish calming down first and then we'll proceed,'_ he told her.

"Give me a minute, okay?" Rogue yelled out.

"Take all the time you need, Anna," she heard Magneto say. Rogue's eyes widened.

'_Did you say that?'_ she asked.

'_No, I did not,'_ the fragment answered.

"Max, I'm sorry I-," Rogue started to rant.

"My girl, there's no need for that. I won't begrudge you fifty minutes," Max said: he didn't sound annoyed or anger, just concerned.

"…Thanks," she called out.

"You're welcome," he said. She took deep breaths; using the techniques Ororo had taught her to calm herself down.

* * *

Max sat down in the hallway waiting, with Charles Xavier, for Rogue to welcome them into the room. He had arrived at the institute about ten minutes before. He had informed Charles of Rogue's absences from just outside the mansion. In fear of her safety, Max had insisted upon being allowed inside the Institute. Charles had cautiously agreed to his presents; which suited him well enough since got had gotten his way. The two had met in the elevator and proceeded to this floor. They had arrived just in time to hear Rogue start screaming. It was clear to him she had just realized she was late, on top of whatever else was bothering her.

"Okay," Rogue finally called out. Max stood up and walked up to the door. He turned the knob but found that it was locked. With the use of his powers he was quickly able to rectify the situation and opened the door. His eyes run over her body as he entered the room. Aside from looking exhausted she seemed alright. There were no open wounds as far as he could see. For some reason there were little scraps of paper shattered on the floor circling a punching bag. He made a mental note to ask her about it later.

"Charles," Max started to say as he walked up to Rogue, "would you be willing to go get a bottle or water or two?" he asked.

"I could ask-" the Professor started to say as Max took a seat in front of Rogue.

"The fastest would be Mr. Wagner and I highly doubt that Anna wants him to see her in this state," he said as he took her gloved hand in his. She stared up at him wide eyed; wondering what he was doing. He smiled at her reassuringly. As usual the expression alone helped to diminish her fear.

"The reason she came back with all you today was to assure your student body that all was well," Max said as he slipped off her glove; her knuckles were bruised, but not bleeding as he had feared. "If any one of your students were to see her now that illusion would be shattered," Max said as he repeated the process with her other hand; he found a similar bruises on that hand as well

"Illusion?" Charles asked in anger.

'_Does she look alright to you, Charles?' _Max asked annoyed as he applied pressure to his touch as he studied her face. "Does that hurt?" Max asked.

"I don't think it's broken. I would've stopped before I-" Rogue started to say.

"Would you have?" Max asked. "How many times did my counterpart ask you to stop before you would listen to reason?" he asked as she cast her gaze downward.

"…I lost count," she said quietly.

"Anna, you can't keep doing this," Max said desperately. "You must take care of yourself," he said. "It's perfectly healthy to feel these emotions in-" he started to say.

"Response to everything I've have been forced to endure but the way I've have been repressing it, isn't," Rogue muttered; taking Max by surprise.

"We've already had this conversation, I take it?" Max asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Yeah," she answered, "and I know your right, Max. But I don't wanna feel this way anymore. After everything I've found out about what Irene's done to me-" she started to say before she stopped herself.

'_So, this has to do with Irene,'_ Max thought to himself.

"No, I- I don't wanna think about her," she told herself.

"Eventually, you must," Max said gently as he his hand went to her shoulder. He gave her a moment to respond but she said nothing. If she didn't want to think about Irene at the moment he was more than happy to provide an alternative topic.

"When we first started all of this I saw the state you were in," Max continued as she gasped. She clearly hadn't expected him to bring up that. This conversation, he knew was long overdue. Both of them had put it aside because of the turn of event. But now, finally they could give the issue the attention it deserved.

"Over a year you had endured the voices, the screaming, and the nightmares. You were forced to experience the absolute worse of humanity and the most painful of memories. You were terrified of closing your eyes and still you did so, every night. You know my past. You know that more than once I contemplated ending it all. But you, my_ brave_ girl, never did. Not _once_," he said strongly.

"It was your strength I first fell in love with, Anna," he said as he moved his gloved hand to her cheek. Tears poured out of her eyes; as he gently rubbed her cheek. He used his free hand to pull out a handkerchief from his pocket. He handed it to her with a small smile. She wiped her eyes dry.

"I knew what a toll the year had taken on you, which is why when I started teaching you, under the guise of the fragment, I tried to convince you to focus on yourself and just _relax_. I distracted you from you search of my memoires every chance I had. But you _insisted_ upon looking, as you constantly do. Finding out the truth in the name of those of you care about was persistently more important than your own well being."

"If only for a little while, I had hoped to keep you from traumatizing yourself further. The only thing that seemed to work was touching you," Max said. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Charles looking suddenly extremely uncomfortable. If he didn't want to hear the conversation he was free to leave the room. "It was the only time you fully let yourself stop worrying about others," he said. "I will admit I was _quite _pleased when I realized that," he said with a smirk. She let out a soft laugh. He chuckled.

"Being in your arms, Max, it was the only time I could stop_ thinking_," Rogue said; her eyes distant. "I love the way you make me feel," she said with a small smile.

"But you nearly always felt guilty afterwards," Max supplied.

"Yeah, I didn" she sighed sadly.

"Although, I don't know why; taking solace in my company is not a betrayal. You have the right to seek happiness in whatever form you choose, my girl," he argued.

"I know that," Rogue said. He repressed a smirk; a month ago she would have argued with him. He listened to her let out a sigh as she glanced up at him. "When you're right, you're right. By you ain't right that often, Max. Don't let one small victory go to your head," she told him. He stared down at her curiously. Where had that comment come from?

"Perish the thought," Max said with a smile. She let out a short laugh at that. "Anna, my point is, is that this world is filled with an abundant of problems, or secrets to uncover, of family members to look after. But you need to make certain that you are mentally and physically up to the task first_ before_ you go about offering aid to others. And it's not selfish to do so, either," he said. _'I certainly know I'm right about this, but perhaps my words are not enough,' _he thought to himself. "Don't you agree, Charles?" he asked as they both glanced over at him. Max watch Charles' eyes met hers; he seemed surprised to be brought into the conversation. "When it comes to the question of ethics Rogue is reluctant is take my advice," Max explained.

"Can you really blame me?" she asked with a laugh.

"Not in the slightest," Max chuckled. She laughed at that.

"… I do agree with Magneto," Charles said hesitantly. "But you have suffered through several unthinkable traumas. A surmountable sum of those trauma inflicted _by _Magneto himself," he pointed out strongly. Max felt his eyes narrow at that.

"I know that, Prof," she said softly as she glanced down at the floor, her hair shielding her face; a gesture of shame.

'_You have nothing to be ashamed of, my girl,'_ he thought strongly to Rogue's future self as he so often did. He watched a small smile appear on her face through the hair; as though she had heard what he had thought.

"And I understand that you have forgiven him for all the pain he's caused you. But I hope you won't forget it, and remember exactly what he is willing to do to you to suit his ends," Charles said.

"Couldn't if I wanted to," she muttered.

'_Well, that's not entirely true. All you would have to do is ask,'_ Max thought..

"Yeah, I know," she laughed, "but I ain't gonna," Rogue said as she lifted her head to met his gaze. "I value knowledge way too much to ever _willingly_ get rid of any," she told him with a short laugh. He stared down at her with a raised eyebrow. Rogue let out a soft laugh at his expression. "Fragment's, like, three hours old, Max. I might as well be telepathic right now," she explained with a small smirk.

'…_I'm not going to be able to hide a thing from you, am I?'_ he asked in his mind. She smirked.

"No, you're not… Guess it's a good thing ya don't really want to, huh?" she asked playfully.

"I suppose so," Max answered thoughtfully. "… I take it you still do not wish to talk about Irene and the crimes she has committed against you?" he asked.

"You have no idea," she told him.

"Would dinner by a suitable distraction?" Max asked.

"Assuming there's good conversation," she said as he stood up.

"Always," he chuckled as he extended his hand down to her.

"… Okay, then," she smiled as she took it. He helped her up to her feet. He reached down and picked up her gloves and handed them to her. He watched the slight sting of pain cross her face as she started to put them on.

"Rogue?" Charles started to ask.

'I'm fine, did it to myself. I'll be fine," she answered quickly.

"I thought the whole point Magneto was trying to make was that you are not in fact, alright: quite, the opposite. But you keep pushing your feelings back: ignoring them. It's not healthy," Charles said.

"It's worked for a year and half," Rogue said under her breath.

"Miraculously," Max committed dryly as Rogue let out a sigh. "You know there must be so truth to our logic if _Charles_ and I are _agreeing_," he said_._

"I know," she said. "I know I'm gonna have to start dealing with everything. Feel the emotions, head on and work to put them behind me," she said. "But that day, is _not _today," she said strongly as he gaze shifted between the two of them. "It's my pain, _my_ trauma. I know that both of you care about me and only wanna see me be happy and healthy but neither of you are gonna talk me into confronting anything before _I_ decide that I'm ready too," she said before she turned towards around towards the door.

'_This is your fault, Magnus,'_ Charles projected into his mind as they both watched Rogue leave the room. _'She wouldn't have this desire to so firmly assert her freedom if you hadn't stripped her of it completely,'_ he thought in anger.

'_I offered her the help she needed within _minutes_ of entering her mind. She refused my help in the areas she most desperately needed assist, because of her misplaced loyalty to you, Charles. You had her here for _half a year_ before I began involved and were too blind to see just how traumatized she was. Tell me, whose fault is that?'_ Max asked dryly before he marched out of the room after Rogue. "I'll have her back around eleven," he shouted out as he saw Rogue's hand holding the elevator door open for him. He quickly joined her. "Thank you," he said as she pulled her hand into the elevator.

"You're welcome," she said as the lift's doors closed. "… Thanks," she said.

"For what?" he asked curiously.

"For being a jackass and entering my mind, I don't know where I'd be right now if we hadn't of started all this," she told him. "The thought of it… scares the crap of out me," she said quietly as she wrapped her arms over her chest.

"Then cast those hypothetical notions out of your mind," he said as he wrapped his arm around her shoulder. "You have no need for artificial fears," he said.

"… I really don't," she muttered her eyes distant yet again.

"I wish I knew what was going on inside of that mind of your. I know how much you despite explaining your troubles; the pain it causes you to retell a horror from you past," he said.

"That's never gonna go away, is it?" she asked sadly.

"We had less than a month of real training, my girl. It took years for me to gain real control over my abilities. I wouldn't give up hope just yet," he said tenderly before he kissed the top of her head. She lifted her head up and kissed him on the lips. His hand went to her cheek, hers to his chest, as they deepened the kiss. They pulled their lips apart as the doors to the elevator opened. He took her hand in his. "Where would you like to eat, Anna?" he asked as they exited the lift.

"I don't know," she smiled as she moved to face him. "Surprise me?" she asked with a smile.

"Is that even possible, right now?" he smirked as he started to lift himself into the air. He felt her utilize his powers to do the same.

"Only one way to find out," she grinned, he chuckled, their hands entwined as they floated high into the air. He pulled her close to him. Her arm wrapped around his neck as their lips met again. "Lead the way?" she said as she pulled away from him.

"Gladly," he said as before he started to fly south.

* * *

Thank you for reading! Please review! Quick fun question: what type of food do you think they should go eat for dinner? And seriously thank you to everyone who reads and reviews. Every review I get is inspiration to keep writing. The reason this fic has lasted so long is because you all gave me the inspiration and support to keep moving forward; which I will always appreciate. ^.^ Till next time.

Oh, one more quick thing, I'm going to go start working on Individual Repartee's second chapter Charles Xavier! And that will probably be the next chapter I post. It shouldn't take too long to write. His back story has mostly to do with one really long scene; which is going to be awesome! Ever wonder why Juggernaut wants to kill Charles? Stay tuned!


	51. Chapter 50

Marigab, you, my friend, made an excellent point and that is where we will start our chapter!

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Fifty

Rogue set off after Magneto as he started to fly away from the institute. In that instance an urge overcame her.

"Max," she called out. His head turned slightly towards her as he slowed his pace. "Max," she called out again. He stopped flying and turned to face her.

"Have you changed your mind already?" he asked.

"Kind of," she told him. "I still wanna go get dinner, but it's just- I feel so gross right now. I wanna go take a shower," she told him before she stared to head back towards the ground: he followed her. "I'll try not to take too long," she said.

"Anna, it's alright," he said comfortingly as she faced him. "Take your time; _relax_," he said with a smile. She nodded quickly; almost dismissively. "None of that, my girl," he said as took hold of her chin. He tilted her head up until they made eye contact. "We have all the time in the world to spend with one another. Am I eager to do so? Of course," he said warmly. "But I'm not so unreasonable as to deny you a shower," he said. She smiled at that before she leaned forward to kiss him.

"Thanks," she said. "Do you wanna come back inside or-" she started to say.

"I'll be fine out here," he said before he gave her a quick peck on the lips. He released her chin. "Go," he ordered gently. She gave him on more kiss on the lips before she backed away from him. She smiled at him before she turned back toward the institute.

'_Prof?'_ Rogue called out as she headed for the elevator.

* * *

Charles Xavier sat with his X-Men as they were finishing up dinner. Already plates were being cleared with the sounds of chatter and laughter in the air. Charles was aware, after Rogue had explained, that she was taking a shower and that Magneto was outside waiting for her. He didn't like that Magneto was just outside on the grounds, but he supposed it was better than him being inside his home again.

"Oh, Charles," Ororo started to say.

"Yes?" he asked.

"There was a package in the mail today but it was not address to anyone," she said.

"May I see it?" he asked before Ororo stood up. She returned a moment later with a brown box about the size of a hard-covered book. She handed it over to him. He looked over the entire box. It was slightly weathered; it was clearly a few years old. On the front of it there was a square that was a slightly different color from the rest of it. "Excuse me, everyone," Charles called out. The room went silent after a moment. "Did anyone receive a card, or a note today from the mail?" he asked. There was an echo of no's, along with several heads shaking.

"I got a letter from my mom," Kitty said. Charles held up the box for her to see.

"This size?" he asked before she leaned forward to take a closer look.

"Nope," Kitty answered shaking her head.

"Anyone else?" Charles asked.

"Ah, Rogue got a postcard today, if that helps," Bobby spoke up as Charles lowered the box. A postcard would fix perfectly into the space.

'_This can't be good,_' he thought to himself before he smiled up at Bobby. "It does, thank you, Bobby," Charles said before he turned away from his students.

"Charles, is everything alright?" Ororo asked as she followed him out of the room.

"I'm not sure," he answered honestly as they made their way over to the elevator. He pressed the button calling for the lift.

"Rogue?" Ororo asked surprised. Charles glanced up to see Rogue standing in the elevator. "I thought you had left already, child," she said as they moved into the elevator.

"I came back. I'm heading out now," Rogue explained as the lift's doors closed and started its ascent.

"… Rogue, we heard you received a postcard today," Charles started to say.

"Yeah, I did," she answered softly.

"Who was it from?" Ororo asked.

"I don't wanna talk about it," she muttered as she crossed her arms over her chest. He and Ororo glanced at each other; worried expressions on their faces before Ororo turned back to Rogue.

"Are you alright?" Ororo asked. Rogue let out a sigh but didn't answer.

"Who's the package for?" Rogue asked; clearly trying to change the subject.

"We're not certain," Ororo answered uneasy. Rogue glanced down at the package, an anxious look on her face.

"It wasn't addressed to anyone?" Rogue asked softly as she examined the box. Charles noticed her eyes linger on the discolored patch.

"No, it wasn't," Ororo replied. Rogue eyes were widened in fear; an expression he had seen on her face far too many times.

"Magneto, what are you doing here?" Ororo asked.

"I'm here to pick up, Anna," Magneto said as Charles glanced up to see him marched up to Rogue. "What's wrong, my girl?" Magneto asked concerned. She threw herself into his arms; hugging him.

"Shh, it's alright," Magneto said gently as he returned the hug. "Whatever it is, know that you're safe," he uttered as Charles listened to her shallow breaths. Rogue's body was shaking in his arms. _'Charles, she terrified,' _he said in disbelief._ "What happened?' _he asked concerned.

'_I'm not certain,'_ Charles replied

'_You're best guess, perhaps?'_ Magneto asked dryly. Charles eyes narrowed in anger.

'_The package-'_ Charles started to answer despite Magneto's tone as Rogue pulled away from Magneto. Rogue reached out and grabbed the package from his hands before he could stop her.

"Rogue," Ororo called out as Rogue stormed out of the elevator. Magneto ran after her as he heard the sound of ripping. Charles moved out of the elevator as he saw that Magneto had caught up with her. From what he could tell Magneto was keeping her from pulling out whatever was in the box.

"Who is this from?" Magneto asked gently. She didn't answer. "Anna, who is this from?" he asked again with a slightly firmer tone. "Please tell me," he added. "I only wish to help."

"Whoever sent her the postcard today," Charles answered sadly as Magneto glanced up at him. His eyebrow was raised thoughtfully before he looked back at Rogue.

"Irene?" Magneto asked. Rogue's sharp breaths followed his question. "That's a yes," he uttered as Charles studied Rogue. Her breath was quickening by the second. Magneto placed his hand on her arm; rubbing her shoulder. The contact seemed to calm her. "Anna," Magneto said soothingly, "_please_, for your sake do not open this today. Give your-self time to heal before you seek out new injuries," he said.

"I can't," Rogue exclaimed. "Max. I need to know. I ain't gonna be able to get it out of my head until I see what's in there. It might not even be from Irene," she argued apprehensively.

"May I suggest a compromise then?" Magneto asked.

"Compromise?" Ororo asked confused as Rogue met Magneto's gaze.

"Allow me to open the package. If it's from Irene then I'll tell you. Depending on what's inside it might be best if you don't see it today," Magneto said.

"But you will?" Charles asked him in anger.

"Or allow Charles to open it," Magneto said as he rolled his eyes. Rogue let go of the packet; she crossed her arms over her chest as she took a few steps away from all of them.

"Both of you can open it. I don't care," Rogue muttered irritated. Magneto looked over at Charles. Charles moved closer to him as he watched Magneto empty the box. They both glanced down at Magneto's hands. There was a stack of letters: at least a dozen. They were tied together with a string.

"Do you know the handwriting?" Ororo asked him.

"No," Charles answered.

"I do," Magneto said bitterly as he handed them and the empty box to Charles.

"Is it from her?" Rogue asked.

"Yes," Magneto answered. "This is a confirmation of something we already suspected," he said before Rogue turned back to face them.

"Confirmation of what?" Charles asked as Rogue walked up to them. Charles watched her glance down at the pile. Her eyes lingered over the handwriting as tears came to her eyes. "Rogue, what is it?" he asked concerned. Rogue took a step towards him as she reached down for the letters.

"No," Magneto said as took hold of her arms. Her pulled her back against him; holding her back. Charles' eyes narrowed as Rogue fought against his hold; tearing flowing. "Not today, Anna. You do not need to read them today," he said gently.

"Max, let me go," Rogue cried desperately as Ororo ordered, "Magneto, release her."

"No," Magneto said to both of them as Ororo moved into an attacking pose. "Miss Munroe, I know you mean well, but there is no reason to escalate the situation to that," Magneto said as Rogue continued to fight him. "It will not help Rogue."

"Storm, do not attack," Charles warned quickly. "Magneto, you aren't helping her either," Charles said as he entered the man's mind. _'Release her, Magnus,' _Charles commanded; attempting to take control. It worked for a moment; Magneto's grasp over Rogue's arms loosened enough for her to escape.

* * *

"Damn it, Charles," Magneto cursed as he took hold of Rogue's arm again and turned her to face him. _'Stay out of situations you don't understand,'_ he said as Rogue kicked him. He held back a groan of pain as he took hold of her other arm.

"Attack me all you like, my girl, but you are not reading those cards today. I will not stand idly by and watch you needlessly torture yourself. Not again," he said strongly.

"What do you mean, not again?" Ororo asked alarmed. He didn't have time to explain.

"Please, Anna, calm down," Magneto said gently in her ear as she cried. "You've confirmed it but that's _enough_ for today," he argued. "You know I'm right," Magneto said coaxingly as he watched the fight start to leave her eyes. Rogue slowly stopped pulling away from him. "Anna, you know I'm right," he repeated softly as she gazed up at him. He released her arms before she clung to him again; crying against his chest. "Shh," Magneto hushed as he returned the hug. He glanced up to see the look of disgust on Charles' face.

"In the past, as I know you've both seen, Rogue has insisted upon searching for answers when no one was asking her too. Often at the expense of her mental health. Those letters are from her father. They were sent to her over the years as Victor attempted to reform their relationship. For reasons unknown Irene kept them from her," Magneto explained. "To what ends I do not know," Magneto uttered darkly before he kissed the top of Rogue's head.

"It's like she wants to hurt me," Max heard Rogue mutter against his chest.

"That may very well be the case," Max said regretfully.

"Why?" Rogue exclaimed as she glanced up at Max; tears in her eyes. "What did I ever do to her?" she asked distraught.

"Nothing, Anna. You do not deserve this; any of it," Max said strongly. "You are a compassionate young woman who has and would go to extraordinary lengths to protect those you care about. Irene was among those when _she_ was the one who was not worthy your love," he said. Max's hand moved to Rogue's cheek. "You are a good person, who deserves nothing but happiness," he finished strongly as he gazed into her eyes; rubbing her cheek affectionately.

"I…" Rogue stared to say as before she stopped herself: her breath catching in her throat. She took a deep breath as she closed her eyes. She opened them a few deep breaths later. She seemed calmer; back in control over herself. "Thank you," she said softly.

"Always, my love," he said as he leaned her forehead on hers. She smiled his mind flowed into hers. He could sense Charles seething in anger next to him. This is what their relationship was; if he had a problem with it he was free to turn a blind eye.

"That's not fair, he's only- " she started to mutter as she glanced up at him.

"Only what?" Max asked concerned.

* * *

Rogue held Max's gaze for a moment; studying his expression. He still wasn't getting that she knew everything that was going through his mind. She sighed.

"Nothing, never mind," she said as she pulled back as stared down at her curiously. "You know how much I hate explaining myself," she said.

"Of course," Max said with a smile before he leaned forward and kissed her forehead. She let out a blissful sigh at the contact.

"Prof," she said as she broke away from him, "we're gonna go now. I'll be back later tonight," she said.

"Rogue, I can't allow you to leave with him," the Professor said strongly.

'_Prof, please don't start this?'_ she asked him frantically.

"I know you feel safe with him, but you're not," the Professor said.

"I don't expect you to understand," Rogue started to say.

"Rogue, he just _restrained_ you and you practically _thanked_ him for doing so," the Professor said incredulously. "Don't go with him. Don't give him _more_ time to strengthen his hold over you," he begged.

"You knew this was coming, Charles. You know that this is going to happen every week, for now on. That is what we agreed to," Magneto said.

"I agreed to nothing. I watched helplessly as you two brokered a deal in which I had no part in," he said before meeting Rogue's eyes again.

"You could have said something if you disagreed with the terms. That's why you were there," Rogue said frustrated.

"I didn't wish to jeopardize your freedom," the Professor said.

"My freedom wasn't in jeopardy," Rogue yelled. "I explained that to you, more than once," she said aggravated.

"I know you want to keep us all safe, but I am not willing to sacrifice you for that safely. We can find another way," the Professor said; seemingly ignoring her words.

"I'm not sacrificing myself," Rogue said with anger in her voice. "How many times do I have to say it? Don't you understand what I'm getting out of this deal? He's gonna help me get control over my powers. That ain't something you can do. You don't even know where to start," she exclaimed as she watched the Professor's eye widen. She instantly regretted those words. "That ain't your fault, Prof," Rogue said sadly. "There ain't enough mutants in the world yet. Everything's new, experimental. But Magneto already has ideas, and over twenty years of experience to base those ideas on. I _need _his help. I've known that- ..."

"I've known that since I first joined the brotherhood," Rogue said surprising both the Professor and Ororo. Max just gazed at her inquisitively waiting for her to continue. "Mystique told me that if anyone could help me get control it would be Magneto. That he had helped a lot of other mutants before me. Pietro told me the same thing. But I found out that Mystique lied and I left before I was in the brotherhood long enough to get individualized attention from Max. I don't regret that. I love this family and I fought so hard to stay a part of it and keep everyone safe. I don't regret anything I've done, not now. But both of you are asking me to do something. The exact opposite of the other and," she started to say before she faltered.

"And I wanna listen to you both. I respect and trust you both, but I can't do what both of you want at the same time. I can't," she said breathlessly. "Does that mean I have to choose? Does that mean I have to choose right now?" she asked torn as her gaze switched between the two of them.

"No, it does not," Ororo said strongly as she walked up to Rogue and put her arm on her back. "Excuse us for a moment," she said as she led Rogue away from the two men.

"Where are we going?" Rogue asked.

"Just over there, not far," Ororo said with a smile as she pointed a little further out on the grounds. They walked for about two minutes. They were well out of ear shot of the other two but she could still see them. "Would you like to sit?" Ororo asked as she sat on the ground.

"What are we doing?" Rogue asked as she sat down in front of Ororo.

"You are upset, Rogue, with good reason. You needed a moment to collect yourself and you needed that moment to be away from both of them. I can see how torn you are. You have tried to stay loyal to both of them: to keep our safety _and _Magneto's secrets. You are very mature for your age, and when you add that to your mutant abilities it is easy to forget how old you really are."

"A fault I know, both Magneto and Charles are guilty of. But we must never forget what is truly important: your safely and well being. No one here is going to ask you to make that kind of decision today. I know you agreed to go with Magneto, but despite your agreement I want you to answer me honestly." she said. Rogue nodded. "Do you wish to go with him?"

"Yes," Rogue answered fed up. How many times was she going to have to explain this?

'_At least, once more it would seem,_' the fragment of Magneto said with a sigh.

"I love spending time with him," Rogue started to say. "He understands me like no one else ever has. I use ta pull back from him because I didn't wanna trade one family for another; not again. That's why he started kidnapping me-"

"To absolve you from the guilt and suspicion of betrayal," Ororo supplied. Rogue nodded.

"I've explained all of this to, Prof. Two days ago he said he was gonna_ respect_ my right to make this kind of decision for myself. But he's so bitter about all the lies Magneto's told. He feels like he was taken advantage of and he was. But he keeps putting that on me and my relationship with Max. He can't see past that. I know that me and Max's relationship ain't normal, but I honestly don't think its Stockholm Syndrome either."

"I care about him _a lot_. And he_ loves _me, Ororo, with all his heart. Every word he said back there, he meant it. I have his mind in mine and I get an update every time we touch. Max can't lie to me, he can't deceive me again. I ain't gonna be taken advantage of. Prof, said he understood that but now he's the one who's been lying. I don't know if it was ta me or him-self. I don't care either. I just- I don't wanna choose, yet. I wanna be here and I wanna be with Max. I know that makes everyone uncomfortable but doesn't it matter what I want?" she asked disheartened.

"Of course, it does," Ororo said gently.

"What about when I start calling Victor? I know him and Logan are enemies and that's gonna make him and a lot of people uncomfortable but he's my _Dad_. He obviously cares about me. Sending me all those letters, trying to reach out ta me. Am I gonna have ta choose between him and the x-men too? And what if I ever decide that I wanna talk to Mystique?"

"Yeah, she's a bitch and right now I want nothing to do with her, but what if I change my mind? She's still my mother and what about Emma and Graydon? Yeah, they work for Magneto but they both care about me. Are we always gonna have to hold fucking meetings _every time_ I decide I wanna talk to someone from my past? Someone else I consider family, who ain't an x-men? That ain't fair," she exclaimed.

"No, it is not," Ororo agreed as she placed her hand on her shoulder. Rogue took a deep breath; it felt good to finally get that off of her chest. It had been bothering her for a while now.

"… Max keeps saying, that if ya all can't understand that. Then the x-men – then the x-men ain't the family I've been searching for my whole life. And he's right, I know he's right. But I don't wanna leave here. I don't wanna leave ya all," she cried.

"Rogue, give us time to understand," Ororo said. "Everything has happened so fast and it seemed you were always in danger, missing or miserable. I have been afraid for you, child. We are trying to understand. But I need more time. Can you give me more time to understand?" she asked.

"Yeah," Rogue nodded, "I can do that," she said. "But I'm still going with Magneto right now," she said; her comment was met with a look of disbelief on Ororo's face. "I don't think you know this. Do you remember a few days ago when Magneto tried to take me from the school after detention?" she asked.

"Yes, I remember," Ororo said.

"Well, Max found me in one of the classrooms and we started talking. Within like a minute I knew that I wasn't in any danger that he was gonna bring me back to the institute Sunday night. I was so tired and he said we were gonna go eat lunch and I could just relax. It sounded so good and I _wanted_ to go with him. But I knew that that would be the first time ya all would be completely unaware of where I was. I mean just the day before me and Kitty went missing for a few hours and we kept everyone up. And everyone was so worried. I didn't wanna be the cause of everyone getting upset. That's why I ran from him. Not 'cause I don't want ta be with him, 'cause I do. I really do. I don't know how many more ways I can explain that to get ya all to believe me," she said.

"I believe you, Rogue," Ororo said. "You do not have to explain again, I believe you," she said with a smile. Rogue let a sigh of relief before she started to take a few deep breaths as she closed her eyes; using the techniques Ororo had taught her. The screaming she could hear in the background was distracting; she wondered for a second how long Magneto and the Professor had been arguing. She hadn't been paying attention before. She tried to push the thought out of her mind as she heard Ororo breathing join with her own; as Ororo had during their first session. Rogue found it soothing meditating in a small group, like this.

A few minutes later, they both opened their eyes.

"Feeling better?" Ororo asked. Rogue nodded with a smile.

"Thanks," she said. "Can we keep doing this?" she asked.

"Of course," she smiled. "Tuesdays after school?" she asked. Rogue nodded. "And any other time you need this. Please, do not isolate yourself. If you are upset come find me," she said.

"Okay," Rogue promised.

"Rogue, before we return to the others, is there anything else you need to talk about?" Ororo asked.

"I do need to talk about Irene," Rogue said softly. "I know I do, but I don't want to at all," Rogue said as she could feel tears threatening to emerge. "The truth is, Ororo, I'm more terrified of Irene than I've ever been of Magneto," she admitted: Ororo's eyes widened at that. "That's why I don't wanna talk or think about it," she said as she watched her body begin to shake again.

"Breath, Rogue," Ororo ordered gently as she took Rogue's hand in her own. Rogue squeezed hard as she fought to suppress her fear. "What you are afraid of?" she asked.

"… I haven't told this to anyone yet," Rogue said quietly.

"What haven't you told ?" Ororo asked concerned. Rogue took a deep breath. Was she really going to say this out loud? She had only thought about it once before.

"The truce, it ah- it took precedents over everything for the last few days. So, when I found out about this two days ago I just- I just pushed it to the back of my mind. I haven't really let myself think about it. I _still_ don't wanna think about it," she said.

"I could go get Charles and we can ask him to read your mind. You won't have to say anything," Ororo offered. Rogue cast her gaze down before nodded sadly.

"I'd like that… Think they're done yelling at each other yet?" Rogue asked dryly.

"It does not matter. They will be finished in a moment regardless," Ororo said before she stood up.

"I'm come with you. It'll be easier," Rogue said as she stood up. Ororo waited for her to catch up before she put her took her hand in hers again. Rogue smiled at the contact. "Thanks, for not being afaird ta touch me. It means a lot ta me," Rogue said.

"I never was, Rogue," Ororo told her with a smile before Rogue leaned her head on Ororo's clothed shoulder as they walked.

* * *

That's it for this chapter! Please review! So, much for Rogue and Magneto being alone ;p

I wanted to let them be alone with one another but then Marigab reminded me that Rogue really needed a shower. Which she totally did! I was actually going to let the package be forgotten about for a till the next morning, but then Rogue was in the building so it came out then!

Oh, I know I said I was going to update Individual Repartee first, but inspiration hit me with this chapter and I was sick this week so this one got written first!

Thank you for reading!


	52. Chapter 51

Please Enjoy! :)

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Fifty-One

"What you need to do is leave her alone-" Charles started to shouted at Max as they argued outside the institute.

"That is not going to happen," Max yelled.

"You know too much, Magnus, and you have no qualms with using that knowledge-"

"To what, Charles? Help the woman I love through a troubling time? What a _monster_ that makes me?" he asked mockingly.

"I stand by what I said. You know what you have done to Rogue."

"Yes, I do, Charles, and she has forgiving me," he said.

"She is unwise to do so," Charles said.

"There we disagree… yet again," he bite out for Charles let out a sigh. "Despite all of this Charles, we must find some way to get along with one another," he said.

"Do you honestly believe that after everything you've done that I could ever consider you a friend?" he asked disbelief.

"Naively is your trait, Charles, not mine," Max said. "What the girl needs now is hope. You aren't so blind as not to see how conflicted she feels towards us?"

"No, I am not," Charles angered in anger.

"As she stated, she is afraid one of us will force her to choose between the other. It will not be me,"he said.

"For now," he commented darkly.

"Not until she finishes high school, at the very least. And even then s-,"Max said.

"And what if she says no again, will you hold her captive until she changes her mind?" he asked as Max's eyes narrowed.

"Of course, not,"he responded irate. "I do not know what our relationship will be in a year and a half. Time will tell whether she will return my feelings," Max said.

"The validity of her emotions for you will never be certain. You have manipulated her far too many times. The b-"

"Do not say it again, Charles," he commanded in rage. "Our bond is not corrupt: _unusual_, yes, but that does not make it wrong."

"How can you claim that? She hasn't fared well by being the object of your obsession. The trauma sh-"

"Do not speak to me about her trauma, Charles, not when it is your incompetence that caused her to fight alone for six-"

"I didn't know," Charles yelled in frustration yet again.

"You're_ telepathic_, fo-,"Max shouted in response.

"That's not how I use my powers."

"And because you didn't use the gifts you were born with Rogue had to suffer?" he asked incredulously.

"If only she had told me," he yelled frustrated.

"So, this is _Rogue's_ fault then?"Max asked pointedly: a disgusted look on his face."The traumatized teenager should have been expected to come forward: seeking help from her new guardian after _every_ other parental figure she has ever known had failed her utterly?"

"No, no, of course not," Charles replied quickly; ashamed that he had even had the thought."_Mystique_, should have been the one to notice. Perhaps, Irene even. In these situations there are usually personality changes; warning signs that something is wrong but I- I missed those signs because I wasn't there to witness the alterations. Bec-," he rambled.

"Because, she _came _to you traumatized?"Max asked.

"Yes," Charles agreed at once. "Yes, precisely,"he said.

"Wouldn't this be the same state of mind I first found her in? _Already_, traumatized?"Max asked knowingly. Finally he was getting somewhere. Charles eyes narrowed.

"… I suppose so," he said bitterly. He held Charles's gaze; smirking.

"And can we both agree that I have been helping her gain control over powers?" he asked.

"Yes, we agree on that point," he said. "But you cannot deny that you _added_ to her agony, Magnus. The stress you put her under was uncalled for; especially from someone who claims to _love_ her. When she finally told me that you were blackmailing her, she wept with joy at finally having an honest conversation with someone she loved. _Wept with joy_," he repeated strongly. Max casted his gaze away from Charles'.

"I know, Charles I was there," Max commented annoyed with himself.

"My point exactly," he exclaimed. "You shouldn't have been there. You shouldn'-"

"An hour ago, she _thanked_ me for entering her mind without her consent," Max said.

"That can't be true," he said in disbelief.

"My mind is not shielded_,_" Max reminded him dryly before he felt Charles slip into his mind. "… She called me an asshole for doing so, of course," he smirked. "But the point still stands. She has no idea how much or how little control she would have today if I hadn't interjected. Neither do you," he said strongly as he pushed against Charles' mind in his. Charles took the hint and exited.

"She does not regret what has happened between us. I most certainly don't. I would do anything to protect her," he said before he let out a sigh, "which brings me to my next point. As much as it pains me to say this: we must come to some sort of understanding, for Anna's sake," Magneto said. "Our arguing is only causing her more anxiety," he said.

"…I agree,"he admitted.

"I have a suggestion,"Magneto said as he saw Rogue and Ororo standing up. Charles nodded for him to continue.

"Whenever Anna's safely is concerned we _unquestioningly_ cooperate with one another, as we did after we found her with Juggernaut. Whatever personal issues we have with each other, we put it aside until we know she is out of harm's way… Agreed?" he asked. He watched Charles as he considered the terms.

"… Agreed," Charles nodded before the two of them shook hands. Rogue and Ororo returned to them hand in hand. Rogue looked wore out, even more so than she had been before. "Are you alright, Rogue?" he asked concerned.

"Could everyone please stop asking me that?" she asked annoyed as she broke away from Ororo. "Ya all know the answer's no. The only thing that changes is _why_," she said. He met Rogue's eyes as she took off a glove.

'_I suppose I'm going to have to get accustomed to his,'_ he thought as he figures touched her face.

"Yeah, you-," Rogue started to say before her eye went distant; they widened. Her eyes refocused as she met his gaze. "Thank you," she said earnestly. "Both of you," she added as she glanced over at Charles.

"You're welcome," Charles said with nod as Rogue flashed him a small smile.

"Always, Anna," Magneto said as put his hand on her shoulder. She leaned up and gave Magneto a quick peck on the lips. Max smiled before he leaned forward and kissed her forehead. She pulled away from him a moment later: their eyes meeting once again. He watched her let out a sigh in relief. She turned away from him a second later to glance at Charles.

"We're still gonna talk with everyone tomorrow, right? Fill in Logan, Mr. McCoy and ya all? Scott and Jean too, if ya want them there?" she asked.

"Yes, I believe that is still the plan," Charles said.

"Okay," she nodded. "So, I'm gonna go with Magneto right now. But I'll be back later tonight: in like five hours. And we'll have that meeting like two o'clock tomorrow afternoon?" she asked.

"I thought you were going to tell us-" Ororo started to say.

"It's nothing that can't wait till tomorrow," Rogue told her as Max glanced down at her with a raised eyebrow. "I really don't want to think about it," she said. "I just want one more night pretending it doesn't exist. I'll face it tomorrow," she told them. "So," she said changing the subject, "we're just gonna go get dinne-. Actually, I really don't feel like going out. Could we go ta Jericho? Order in?" she asked.

"Of course," Magneto said with a smile.

"Maybe play chess, again?" Rogue asked.

"I think you've utilized enough strategies for one da-" Magneto started to say.

"I don't mind. Thinking strategically just- it's just the way I think now," she said.

"Because you haven't dropped your guard in days," Magneto said. "You need to-"

"Relax," Rogue finished. "I know, Max. You repeating that every ten minutes isn't gonna make it any easier, for me. I_ want_ to relax. Just- … shit keeps happening," she said annoyed. "It's just been one thing after another, and then another, and then a _fucking_ another. I just- I can't- … I- I need.

"What do you need, Anna?" Max asked tenderly as he placed his hand on her shoulder.

"You," she said in German as her eyes met hers. "A bed," she smiled; he couldn't help but smirk at that. "Maybe a back rub?" she asked. "I want to forget everything else. I _need_ to _stop_ thinking. At least for a few hours," she told him.

"Gladly, my girl," Magneto said. Rogue smiled at that.

"We're gonna get out of here," Rogue said in English to Charles and Miss Munroe.

"No later than twelve," Charles ordered quickly.

"Okay," Rogue nodded. "See ya both later," she said as they turned to leave. As they walked Max offered Rogue his hand. She took it with a smile as their feet left the ground.

* * *

Charles watched with a heavy heart as Magneto took his ward from their home. With all his being he wished he could call her back; stop her from leaving with him. It took strength to keep himself from shouting out.

"I am never going to be comfortable with this," Charles said mostly to himself.

"It's what she wants, Charles," Ororo said.

"She's still a teenager, Ororo. They often want things that they shouldn't. It's up to their guardians to shy them away from these things: which I have _tried_ to do. If only I could manage to keep_ him_ away from her. But Magneto has made that impossible," he said bitterly as Magneto and Rogue flew out of his line of sight. He turned to Ororo. "He's in her very mind. I don't know the full extent of his influence over her. I'm afraid for her. That's all," he said.

* * *

Rogue let herself collapse onto Magneto's bed. Magneto had remained downstairs to order their dinner. He had insisted upon it still being a surprise. She had no problem with allowing him that and had even pushed his fragment back with the others to keep his selection a mystery. She let out a sigh as she turned on her stomach; in preparation for her massage. She maneuvered the pillow as she made herself comfortable.

She knew this house was lined with the same metal Max used for his helmet: that he had a small army at his beck and call. Even with Irene out there; scheming plots she didn't comprehend: being here with Max made her feel protected from all of that.

She took a few deep breaths relaxing completely. It was then, in her exhausted state, she made the mistake of closing her eyes.

* * *

Charles sat anxiously as the clock stuck midnight. Ororo and Logan sat up with him in the kitchen as they waited for Rogue's return. They had been waiting for over an hour. Charles and Ororo had both been reading books. Logan had been taking turns between sitting and pacing the room. More than once Ororo had commented that he could go to bed. But Logan had only shook his head and remained in the room. It wasn't that he minded the man's company; but Logan's anxiety was getting to him. Adding to his own worriment and causing him to be unable to relax. Charles took a deep breath as he turned the page: determined not to let himself panic. ...

Charles glanced up at the time it was now twelve- forty six.

"What if he ain't gonna let her come back?" Logan voiced what all three of them had been thinking. Charles glanced up from his book at Logan; who was standing a few feet away from the table; once again he had been pacing.

"They could just be late," Ororo said.

"And if they're not? What are we gonna do, Chuck? We need a plan," Logan said irate.

"Logan, please calm down. Panicking is not going to help anything."

"Well, what the hell could they be up too that their this lat-" Logan started to ask before he stopped himself. "No one answer that," he commanded quickly.

"I had no intention of doing so," Charles said darkly as he watched Logan walked away from them. Charles let out a sigh. "Logan, Rogue believes she is no danger with Magneto. As far as I'm concerned she is wrong on that front. But what is clear is that Magneto is attempting to _maintain_ her trust. He _will _return her to us. The question is _when_," he said.

"What if you're wrong?" Logan asked. "How much longer are we just gonna sit her-" Logan started to say before the phone rang. All three of them glanced at the phone.

"Do you think it is-" Logan started to ask.

"Who else would call this late?" Ororo asked as Charles picked up the phone.

"Xavier Institute," Charles said calmly as the others became silent.

"Good evening, Charles," Magneto said.

"Where is she, Magneto?" Logan demanded to know.

"Logan, allow me to-" Charles started to say.

"She's asleep," Magneto answered regardless. "She went upstairs before me. By the time I had finished ordering our dinner she was asleep. I attempted waking her a few hours ago to eat, and a few other times throughout the night, but she refused to be stirred. I had hoped not to spend the evening alone, but she finally getting the rest she needs. I suppose that's what matters," he mused.

"Yes, of course. Obviously, you haven't left yet, Magnus, how soon we you be leaving?" Charles asked.

"Once Anna wakes up," Magneto answered.

"Just bring her back asleep," Charles said.

"Do you want to give the poor girl a _panic attack_?" Magneto exclaimed. "The last thing she remembers in falling asleep in my bed and _that_ is where she will awaken. I will not be the cause of her fear and confusion any longer," he said. Charles let out a sigh. If she suddenly found herself in her own bed without an explanation she would panic. But if he were there to explain, as he had been the last time, he was sure he could calm her in a matter of seconds.

"Magnus, I understand you reasoning but I am mor-" Charles started to say.

"I'm certainly glad to hear that. Thank you for understanding, Charles," Magneto said.

"Yes, you're welcome, but about-"

"You'll see Anna in the morning, C-"

"Now, wait just-" Charles started to say as Logan yelled, "She is _not_ staying overnight."

"It wouldn't be the first time," Magneto said pointedly as Wolverine started to growl.

"Logan, please," Charles said as Magneto said, "Have a good night," Magneto said.

"Wait, Mag-" Charles started to protest before the line went dead. He quickly dialed star- sixty-nine. The phone rang for a moment. Charles almost let out a sigh of relief as someone picked up. But his hope waned when that same person immediately hung up the phone. "Damn it," Charles muttered under his breath.

"Charles?" Ororo asked concerned.

"Now, what?" Logan asked.

"Without Cerebro there is nothing we can do," Charles said regretfully.

"What?" Logan asked enraged.

"Even with it I don't know if I would be able to find her. If she is asleep then she's certainly not using her powers, that's assuming Magneto hasn't taken her somewhere I would be able to locate either of them. We'll have to wait till the morning," Charles sighed.

"That's it?" Logan asked enraged. "You never should have let her leave with him," he muttered darkly.

"I wasn't given a choice. None of us were. _Both_ Magneto and Rogue are determined to spend time alone with one another. I know you're worried, Logan. We all are. But I'm sorry, there's nothing else we can do at the moment. Let's _try_ to get some sleep. We'll reassess the situation in the morning," Charles said before Logan stormed out of the room growling under his breath.

"I am certain she is fine," Ororo said.

"Let's hope so," Charles said sadly before he back up from the table.

* * *

So, what do you guys think is going to happen? I have this habit of keeping you all on your toes, throwing in twists and turns you would never expect. And I'm just curious if anyone can guess what will happen next.

Also, I had an idea if anyone would like to take me up on it? The college student in me still loves deadlines. They made me haul ass when I had too and kept me from procrastinating. So, here's the deal: if anyone would be willing to tell me their date of birth I would love to aim my updating times around getting all my lovely readers a treat on their birthdays. So, what do you think?

For the record, if I only get one birthday you getting a chapter on it, every year I'm still writing this fic. If I get over twenty- or it's tomorrow, I might be off by a few days. But I will try!

Thank you for reading and please review!


	53. Chapter 52

Please enjoy!

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Fifty-Two

Rogue's eyes slowly opened as she let out a yawn.

'_Wonder how long I was asleep for,'_ she thought to herself as she sat up. She glanced around the room. There was no sign of Max. She got off of the bed and exited the room. "Max?" she called out as she made her way down the hall.

She received no answer. As she made her way downstairs she was surprised by the natural light coming in through the windows. "Its morning?" she asked herself confused. 'Fuck! _Why'd he let me sleep so long?' _she asked annoyed as she ran towards the kitchen. _'Prof, must be so fucking worried right now,'_ she thought anxiously as she entered the kitchen. She picked up the phone and dialed.

"Xavier Institute," Kitty answered.

"Hey, Kitty. Prof, around?" she asked.

"Hold on a second. I'll go find him," her roommate said. "So, like, were you out all night with _Magneto_?" Kitty asked with mirth.

"God, I wish. I fell asleep on Max as soon as we got here. I _just _woke up," Rogue answered. _'What time-'_ she started to ask herself as she glanced at the clock on the wall: it read eight-fifty-two.

"So, that's totally a yes," Kitty said.

"It doesn't count if I slept the whole time," she told her roommate as she exited the kitchen: determined to find Max.

"You sound bummed," she commented.

"A little," Rogue sighed as she searched the ground floor. "I don't wanna wait another week to spend some time with him," she said. He wasn't in his study.

"Aww," Kitty said. "Like, still kinda creepy, but also _aww_," she said with a giggle. Rogue smiled with a short laugh. At least she had one person at the institute she could talk about Max with.

"Thanks for understanding, Kitty," she said as she made her way upstairs.

"Hey, like, what are friends for?" she asked. Rogue smiled at that.

'_He wasn't allowed to turn on the inhibitor field without my consent. So, he must've fallen asleep in one of the spare bedroom?'_ she asked herself as she begun from the first bedroom at the top of the stairs.

'_Seems perfectly logical to me,'_ the fragment of Magneto commented as Rogue heard knocking through the phone as she got to the bedroom she had slept in during her last stay in Jericho. Inside she saw Max sleeping on the bed: in nothing but his boxers. She quietly closed the door. He had allowed her to get a full night's rest. She was willing to return the favor.

"Hold on. I think I found him," she said as Rogue heard a door being knocked through the phone. "Professor?" Kitty asked as she headed back down the hallway. "…It's Rogue," she said as she got to the staircase and sat down on the top step. She sat there waiting for a minute or so.

"….Thank you, Kitty," she heard the Professor say as he took the phone. "Rogue, are you alright?" he asked.

"I'm okay," she said. "Are you okay?" she asked.

"I'm fine. Just tired," he sighed.

"Ya didn't get a lot of sleep last night," she mumbled mostly to herself.

"No, I did not," he answered regardless.

"Prof, I'm sorry. I can only imagine the thoughts that ran through your head when I didn't come home. _Honestly_, I didn't mean ta spend the night. I mean, I knew how tired I was but I just closed my eyes for a second and I was out," she said.

"It's alright," Charles said with a sigh. "When we you be leaving?" he asked.

"After Max wakes up," she said as before the Professor let out a sigh.

"Rogue, is there a car there?" he asked.

"No, there ain't," she answered.

"Could you absorb Magneto? Fly home?" he asked. Rogue took a deep breath.

"I don't know how long I'd have to hold on for the absorption to last long enough to get me home," she reasoned. That wasn't the only reason she wasn't willing to do it but that was the only reason the Professor would care about.

"I see," he said. "What is the address? I'll come pick you up myself," he said.

"Prof, I can't reveal the location of any building Max owns without his consent. It's in the truce," she reminded him.

"So, you're trapped there," he said annoyed.

"No, I ain't," she insisted. "I could walk home, or I could walk just far enough and call myself a cab. Or I could go and wake Max's ass up. And I'll do that in like a half hour if he ain't awake by then. I could call Victor and ask him to drive me ta Bayville. There are a lot of strategies I could use to leave _if_ I wanted to," she told him. She listened to the Professor let out a sigh.

"Rogue-" he started to protest.

"Look, I'm sorry I accidently spent the night but I _wanna_ spend a little time with him… I'll be back on time for our meeting at two o'clock, I promise," she said. They both knew she wasn't asking. She was simply telling him what was going to happen.

"Rogue, we need to talk about this. I know the stress you have been under and I have _tried_ to be understanding. But there are_ limits _to what I can allow you to get away with. A teenager in my care staying out all night with a man three times their age is one of those things," he said.

"Prof, it was an accede-" she started to protect.

"We'll talk about it when you get home," he said sternly. "Please call when you are about to leave," he said.

"Okay," she said before he hung up the phone. _'I am never gonna hear the end of this, when I get back,'_ she thought to herself before she pushed the thought out of her mind. She would deal with that later, when she was in front of the Professor.

'_So, now what?'_ the fragment asked.

'_I don't kno-'_ she started to say annoyed before a thought came to mind._ 'If I'm gonna get yelled at anyway I might as well make the crime worth the lecture, right?' _she asked with a small smile.

'_I suppose so,'_ the fragment chuckled: seeing what her idea was.

'_Max, where's your inhibitor field?' _she smirked.

* * *

Magneto let out a soft moan as he felt a hand upon his face.

"Max," Anna's sweet voice called out to him tenderly. "Max," she asked again, beckoning him to consciousness. He slowly opened his eyes to see his girl's face mere inches away from his: a gentle smile on her face as she caressed his. "Good morning," she said.

"Good morning," he mumbled; closing his eyes again. She let out a soft laugh at his slurred greeting.

"Thank you for being so understanding yesterday," she said before he felt her lips on his. He let out a groan as she pulled back a moment later.

"Of course," he mumbled before opened his eyes hardly believing his own eyes. Anna was sitting in front of him in nothing but a black bra and underwear. He closed his eyes again.

"You_ better_ not be going back ta sleep, Max," she said.

"That's assuming I'm not asleep at the moment," he mumbled.

"Why? This too good to be true?" she asked with a laugh as he felt her pulled his bowers down and off. Had he felt that right? Had she just-

"Honestly, yes," he mumbled as he opened his eyes again. Indeed, he was now naked by her hand. He let his gaze roam over her body: taking in the sight of her.

"It's not," she smirked as she took hold of his cock. His eyes closed as she began to stoke him. "And you ain't dreaming, Max," she said before he felt her lips on his again: his hand cupped her cheek. She let out a soft moan as she deepened the kiss; her tongue exploring his mouth. "…I'll prove it to ya," she said before he pulled her mouth back to his as his free hand moved to her body: touching her as he pleased. She let out a soft moan at his caresses.

She pulled away from his mouth a few moments later and moved to his ear.

"It's my turn to seduce you, Max," she whispered in his ear; all the while her hand still stoking his cock.

"Anna, I assure you I am already aroused," he uttered before she kissed him again.

"Give me five minutes and I'll have ya redefining the word," she whispered as she stared into his eyes. He watched in amazed anticipation as she moved down to his neck. He let out a groan as she bit his neck: her free hand running up and down his body. She left a soft kiss where she had bitten him before she started to move down his body: kissing his skin along the way.

He let out a hiss as he felt her tongue on the tip of his penis; licking him. His breaths were coming so fast now as his hands brushed her shoulders. He wanted to touch her but down there she was just out of his reach.

"Would you be willing to turn around, my girl?" he asked. She let out a soft laugh.

"You thinking what I'm thinking?" she asked with a smirk.

"Dear, god, I hope so," he uttered. She laughed as she turned to sit on him: her back facing him. She resumed touching and licking his member as he reached out and grabbed at her hips. He pulled her closer to him as she took him into her mouth. "Anna," he gasped. How long had it been since anyone had given him this? He let out a gasp as she removed her mouth.

"It ain't polite ta try and think of someone else in bed," Rogue reprimanded; with mirth in her voice.

"Apologizes, Anna," he uttered quickly; despite her tone. "It won't happen again, my love," he said before her kissed the back of her thigh. She let out an amused sigh before she, thankfully, returned his cock to her mouth. He eyes closed as he softly rubbed her through her underwear. She let out a moan at the contact as she took in more of his width than she had before: his eyes rolled back. He allowed himself to enjoy the feel of her mouth for a few moments; his eyes closed in utter satisfaction. "I cannot believe this is the first time you're doing this," he mumbled.

She let out a short laugh before she said, "Well, you know what happens when I put my mind ta something," she said jokingly. He chuckled. "I quickly become an expert in any field of my choosing," she said as he slipped his figures under her underwear and into her. She let out a moan as she pushed herself into his hand.

"Thank you for choosing this one," he said as she continued to stoke his cock.

"My pleasure, Max," she mumbled blissfully as he kissed the skin just below her opening: his figures thrusting inside of her.

"Give me five minutes and I'll have you redefining the word," he quoted with a smirk as he pulled her underwear to the side: giving himself more room to kiss. He smiled as he heard her let out a laugh at his comment. He held her open with his figures thrusting his tongue inside of her before her laugh turned into a gasp.

They continued to touch each other: letting out moans in turn for a few minutes until she let out a passion filled scream. He kissed her mount as her scream simmered down to a whimper. He moved his hands to her waist: her hand leaving his member as he gently pushed her onto her back.

He listened to her sharp breaths as he reached over to the nightstand. Taking out a condom: he took a moment to put it on as their eyes met. The relaxed smile on her face was making all his patients worth the effort he had put forth. He climbed back onto the bed. She sat up as he leaned in to kiss her. They deepened the kiss as he reached around her back and unclasped her bra.

He helped her remove the bra: discarding it to the floor before he cupped her breasts. She moaned into his mouth as she took hold of his member: stoking him again.

"I want you inside me," she whispered. He groaned as he pushed her back onto the bed. He didn't need to be told twice. He pulled her underwear off of her. He threw them out of his hand: not bothering to look where they landed as he climbed on top of her.

He held himself up with his elbows as she looped her arms around his neck. She pulled him down for a kiss as he took hold of his member, positioning it. She let out a moan as he entered her. She wrapped her legs around his waist as he was thrusting into her. Each moan that escaped her mouth only fueled him more.

After a few minutes she pulled him closer to her before pushing his side. He took the hint and took hold of her: turning them over until he was on his back. She smiled down at him as she took hold of his member. He let out a moan once he was again inside of her. Moving his hands to her waist, he closed his eyes as she rode him.

Minutes later he let out one last groan as he came. Her high pitched moan soon followed. She lifted herself slightly: taking his member out of her before he felt her collapse against his chest. He listened to both of their sporadic breaths as he ran his figures through her hair.

Slowly, their heart rates and breathing regulated.

"That was-" he started to say after a long moment.

"A nice way to wake up?" she asked with a smile as their eyes met. He let out a chuckle.

"Most definitely, my love," he agreed with a grin. He watched her lift herself up slightly: bring her lips to his as he took hold of the back of the neck.

They pulled away from each other a few moments later as he rubbed the back of her neck.

"I did promise you a back rub," he said with a smirk as he watched her gaze over his shoulder.

"I wish we had the time," she sighed regretfully. He turned to see what she was looking at: the clock read eleven- twenty- three. "I promised Prof I'd be back at the institute before two. I wanna make good on that promise," she told him: he could see the conviction in her eyes. "Can I get a rain-check on the backrub?" she asked with a smile.

"Of course," he said as he released the back of her neck.

"Thank you," she said before she gave him a quick peck on the lips. "Do ya mind if I get in the shower first?" she asked as she got off of him: sitting on the bed still.

"We could save time and water if we took one together," he suggested with a smirk as he sat up.

"Yeah," she grinned as she glanced back at him, "but, Max, I don't think I gonna be able to control myself," she started to say as he laughed. "… I gotta time limit today," she said seriously.

"We're always going to have a time limit as long as you're willing to summit yourself to someone else's authority," he muttered absentmindedly. She looked away from him a moment: her eyes growing distant.

"I know," she said a moment later. "That's the price of being in a family. You're accountable to others," she shrugged before her eyes grew distant yet again. The expression on her face grew dark: as she gazed past him. "Anna, what is it?" he asked concerned. "Anna?" he asked loudly.

"Nothing," she mumbled before shook her head, letting out a sigh. "Nothing concerning you, Max," she said as she met his gaze again. "But god now, I _really_ need a shower," she mumbled to herself as she pulled away from him. He let her hand slip of his, puzzled by her behavior. _'Is she hiding someth-?' _he started to ask in disbelief as he watched her with unease. She entered the bathroom, closing the door behind her. '_It's probably just a memory she had to fight to keep back. Explaining what she had seen would only cause her more discomfort. Of course,_ _she_ si_mply brushed it off,_' he told himself: shaking his head at his folly.

* * *

An half an hour later Max was in the kitchen, heating up their dinner from the night before. They had agreed there was no reason to let the food go to waste: they needed to eat after all. He had gotten out of the shower himself about ten minutes ago. Anna Marie was still drying her hair.

He turned when he heard someone entering the room.

"What's wrong?" he asked in response to the look on Rogue's face.

"Huh?" she asked as her eyes refocused. "Oh, I ain't looking forward to the lecture I'm gonna get when I go home, that's all," she told him. "You sure you don't want any help with anything?" she asked: changing the subject.

"I'm certain, please sit, _relax_," he said as he turned back to the oven. "It _was_ an accident on your part," he said as he looked inside the oven examining the food. It still needed a few minutes.

"I already explained that," she sighed as he heard her sit down. "And I'm gonna have ta say it again," she said annoyed. Max let out a snort.

"And here I thought saving Charles' life _twice_ in the past few weeks would grant you a longer grace period," he said.

"You'd think," she said dryly. "Apparently, staying out all night with you was the final straw. He can't sit by and allow the teenagers in his care to be out all night," she said mockingly.

"No, sitting by is just about all Charles_ can _do," Max said as he walked over to the table.

"Max," she exclaimed slightly offended as he let out a chuckle.

"Am I wrong?" he asked as he down across from her.

"He does more than nothing," she defended.

"Oh, yes, I nearly forgot. He enjoys meddling in situations that are none of his business: for example, _our_ sex life," he said.

"His opinion ain't gonna change anything between us," she told him.

"Again," Max added. Her eyes narrowed at that.

"If I don't get to bring up any of the bullshit from the past then why the fuck should you get to?" she asked annoyed. He didn't have a response to that: at least he was not quick enough to avoid her next statement. "I'm a hell of a lot stronger than I was two months ago: mostly cause of you. And I will _never_ allow anyone to make me go along with something I don't agree with," she said: he could see the passion behind her eyes, hear it in her voice.

"If I wanna have sex with you, then I'm gonna. If I want nothing ta do with you: then we will never speak again. I might summit myself to Prof's authority-" she said before cutting herself off. "Well, kind of-" she added with shrug. "Okay, not really," she admitted. "Not lately, but can ya blame me?" she exclaimed. "I didn't trust him to call the shots. You gotta know what the fuck is going on- you have ta be_ informed_ before you can be trusted to make the kind of decisions I made for all of us. And that's the problem," she sighed.

"I've made them. Cause of me we're all safe from you, and I know Prof has got to be feeling that or else he wouldn't be getting so worked up over one sleepover, right?" she asked.

"Perhaps," Max answered before she let out a sigh in frustration. "He isn't angry with you, Anna. You do realize that, don't you?" he asked as she met his eyes. "How could he be?" he asked with a smile.

"I know, he's anger at himself," she sighed.

"Helplessness has the tendency to inspire self pity, and fear," he said. "Which often turns to anger and hate," he said.

"Thank you, Yoda," she said rolling her eyes as he raised an eyebrow.

"Who the hell is Yoda?" he asked. She stared at him incredulously before she let out a soft laugh.

"Ya know, Max, considering part of your plan is to influence society on an international level: you _might_ wanna learn a few things about its cultures. How else are ya gonna understand how you're actions are gonna effect people if you don't understand _them_?" she asked.

"I know plenty enough about huddled masses, Anna. Besides, who needs to understand the human mind when you have an elite team of telepaths?" he asked with a smirk. She rolled her eyes as he stood up.

"All I'm saying is it wouldn't hurt ya ta watch a few movies," she said as he walked over to the oven and looked inside. Yes, the food was done now.

"No, thank you," he said dryly as used his powers to open the oven and levitate the pans of pasta and garlic bread over to the table. "Can we change the subject?" he asked as he saw her rolling her eyes again. He picked up her plate and began serving her.

"Sure," she huffed.

"Actually, I do have a question for you," he said as he put down her plate.

"Yeah?" she asked as he picked up his plate to serve himself. She reached out and picked up a piece of garlic bread.

"Would you like a cellular phone?" he asked. She raised an eyebrow at the question as she took a bite. He put his plate back on the table before he picked up his fork. "I give one to everyone on my team," he said as she picked up her fork and took her first bite. "I thought you might like to have a means to contact who-ever you please on your person at all times," he said before he took his first bite.

"I would," she said after a moment; still deep in thought. "But can it wait till Saturday? I already got enough ta deal with today with Prof. I don't wanna add this on top of everything else," she explained.

"I still have to purchase the device so I doubt that will be a problem," he smirked.

"Okay," she said with a soft laugh before they fell into silence as they ate. As usual their silence was comfortable. He hardly minded the lack of conversation and merely enjoyed the fact that he wasn't eating alone. "…I just realized something," she said after a moment.

"Yes?" he asked as he reached out her his second piece of garlic bread.

"We've never had a pointless conversation," she said. He raised an eyebrow at the comment. "Pretty much every conversation we've ever had has been about something important-"

"Why would we discuss something unimportant?" he asked puzzled.

"Hear me out," she said.

"Please," he said gesturing for her to continue.

"So, when we first started talking, it was all about my powers or you trying to get me to distrust Prof. Then we met in person and it was all about all the fucking hostage situations and threats," she said rolling her eyes before she took a bite of food. "But with the truce done, we're finally pasted all that bullshit," she said with a smile. "We know when we're getting together next so we don't need to plan that. You have any more questions for me, Max?" she asked.

"Not at the moment, no," he answered.

"And I don't have any for you," she said. "So, what do we talk about?" she asked with smile.

"What would you like to talk about?" he asked.

"I don't know," she sighed.

"What do you and friends usually talk about?" he asked.

"Just stuff," she shrugged. "Homework, whatever we watched on tv the night before, how much we all hate Logan's training session," she said with a smirk. "Me and Risty used ta go ta the movie-," she said before she stopped herself. "What?" she asked.

He raised an eyebrow.

"What-"he started to ask.

"That look on your face when I brought up Risty," she said. No, he couldn't let her find that out today. She was in such a good mood. It might cause her- "Yeah that one," she said. "What about her?" she asked confused.

"How do I look precisely?" he asked.

"Disgusted. I didn't think ya had anything against the British," she said: half jokingly.

"I don't," he answered; it would be pointless to lie, she would only find out later.

"People with purple hair?" she asked.

'_Like Bes-'_ he thought to himself before his eyes widened. No, he couldn't mention Elisabeth Braddock. She was the last person on the face of the planet he should mention. "Hardly, my girl," he laughed.

"Uh, huh," she said suspiciously as she stared at him. Most people would be fooled by the false laugh but Rogue was clearly not one among them. She knew him too well. He needed to change the subject before she asked- "So, it's just Risty then? What do you have against her?" she asked. He merely held his gaze as he tried to think of way out of the conversation.

"Alright, fine," she exclaimed. "I get it. Both of you _really_ don't wanna answer that question," she said.

"The fragment?" he asked.

"Yeah, he asked me ta drop it. Said I didn't need this today," she said.

"You don't" he agreed. "Please trust me on this?" he asked. She stared at him for a moment.

"… Is Risty okay?" she asked seriously. It was a fair question: the last time the girl had seen Risty it had been in his custody.

"Yes, I know it for a fact that she is fine. You have my word that is the truth," he answered.

"… Fine," she huffed. He let out a sigh of relief. "It's that bad?" she asked annoyed.

"Yes," he answered. She let out an annoyed sigh as she shook her head.

"I'll just put it on the list of shit I need ta ask about," she said annoyed. "It keeps getting longer," she said as she stabbed a piece of the pasta forcefully.

"I am sorry, Anna," he said. "But you need the time. You've needed the time for over a year. My dear girl, you have proved without a doubt that you have unrelenting strength: the resolve to see any situation through to its conclusions. Could you hear this news today without breaking? Of course," he said strongly. "But there is only so much one person should be expected to endure in a given amount of time. You have passed that threshold months ag-"

"Two weeks, Max," she said interrupting him. "I'm gonna ask you in two weeks," she told him.

"And I will answer you then, I promise," he said. She held his gaze.

"Okay…" she sighed before staring down at her plate again.

"… Ann-" he started to say.

"Max, I need a few minutes," she told him.

"Understood," he said.

* * *

Thank you for reading! :)


	54. Chapter 53

Please enjoy!

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Fifty-Three

They had eaten the rest of their meal in silence. He hadn't been particularly thrilled by the lack of conversation but it was what it was. Max watched Rogue stand.

"Are ya done?" she asked.

"I am," he answered. The words had barely left his mouth when she told hold of his plate and walked them over to sink. He watched her go to turn on the water.

"You can just leave them. I'll take care of it later," Max told her.

"You sure?" she asked as she turned to look at him. "I don't mind helping ya clean up," she told him as he stood.

"Thank you, Anna," he said as he walked up to her. "But I'm certain," he said smiled as he ran his ran down her cheek. She let out a blissful sigh as her eyes closed. He ran his hand down the side of her face. He cupped the back of her neck as she moved her hands to his chest. He rubbed her there as he moved his other hand to her shoulder. He rubbed her shoulder as she let out a soft moan.

"We should leave soon," she said as she wrapped her arms around him lightly. He couldn't help but chuckle. She hit his chest playfully in response to his chuckle before she leaned her head against his chest. "I gotta get back to the institute," she said breathlessly as he rubbed her back.

"We have a few minutes," he said.

"Massage is going put me ta sleep, Max," she said: he could hear the smile in her voice. He cupped her chin in his hand and tilted her face until their eyes met. Was it his imagination or was that fear in her eyes? He leaned down and kissed her.

"Another rain-check then?" he asked.

"If ya don't mind," she smiled. He leaned down and kissed her again. She broke the kiss and leaned her head against him again as she hugged him tightly. "I don't wanna go," she groaned.

"We both know you need time to feel safe, to recover from the last year," he started to say as she moved her head off of his chest. "The place you choose to do so could be here, Anna. You do not have to leave, my girl. You're welcome to stay as long as you like," he said as he watched her eyes. In disbelief he realized she was thinking about it. She was actually concerning staying with him. Hope overtook him.

"I couldn't do that to my-" she started to mutter.

"Haven't you done _enough_ for them?" he asked in disbelief. "You've done your fair share, _more so_. You need to worry about yourself. Take care of_ yourself_ for a change," he said as he watched her study him. "I can pull Pietro out of Bayville. He is the only one beside you who knows about this house. No one would be able to find you here," he ranted: hardly able to contain himself. She stared up at him: a look of pity on her face. At first she sighed. After a moment a soft smile graced her face. She leaned up and kissed him.

"Max, you should really let a girl finish her sentences," she said with a laugh. He stared down at her with raised eyebrow. "What I was gonna say is that I couldn't do that to _myself_. I know I would be safe here:_ isolated_ and safe. And maybe that _is_ what I need to recover. But I didn't fight so damn hard to regain my freedom just to imprison myself," she said with a sad smile. "I know that if you thought about it for a minute you'd realized that _cowering in fear_ ain't the choice you'd have me make," she said. He let out a sigh.

"… No, it isn't," he agreed regretfully as she placed her hand on his cheek; smiling. She leaned up and kissed him again. "Let's get you home then," he sighed as he released her. She smiled at that.

"You're a good person, Max" she said. "Even though you don't like to admit it that often: you are," she told him before she gave him a peck on the lips. He frowned at the comment. How many times had he been called a monster over the course of his life? Far too many…

"I believe there are several individuals who would disagree with you," he said sadly. She reached up and put her hand on his cheek. She gently turned his face until he was look down at her. The smile on her face was entrancing. He couldn't help but return the warm expression.

"Do these people know ya as well as I do?" she asked.

"No one knows me as well as you do, Anna Marie," he said with a smile.

"Then why the fuck would you take their opinions over mine? " she asked with a smirk. "Just 'cause there's more of them doesn't make them right," she said. He stared down at her dumbfounded. She gave him another kiss. His eyes closed at the contact as he put his hand on her hips. He never wanted to let go of her again.

She however, pulled back a minute later.

"I gotta go grab something before we go. Meet ya by the door?" she asked. He nodded, not trusting himself to speak. "Okay," she said. "See ya in a minute," she said as she slipped out of his hold. He watched with a sigh as she walked out of the room.

* * *

Max stood in the front hall of his house. He had put his jacket and gloves on moments ago and now stood waiting for Anna to join him. Since their last conversation he had been deep in thought. Various thought ran though his mind:

How could this one girl bring so much joy to his life? How did she always manage to say the most profound things to him? Before they had begun speaking he had been bitterly accepting of his view of his own nature. He was a monster, striving to use his knowledge to spare the next generation his faith. He never wanted his children to stare down at the cold copse they had created either out of revenge, anger, or necessity. But her words, more than from just today, were causing him to reevaluate every opinion he had about himself. Maybe he wasn't such a monster after all...

He shook his head sadly.

After everything he had done, of course that's what he was. His life had made him that way. His childhood, his years in the camps had forged him into the deadly force he was. He was still willing to accept that, but the fact that Anna believed otherwise was truly inspiring for him. Never before had he had a partner who saw him in such a refreshing light: not even Magda.

His late wife had been just as tainted as he had been: lived through the same horrors. But once she had seen what those horrors had made him capable of she had fled from him. Never to return to the arms of a loving husband who needed her support through the loss of their child.

His fists balled at the thought of Magda.

He remembered standing at her grave all those years ago. Rage had been his first response; consuming him for hours afterwards as he had stood there in the cold, cursing her name. Tears had only followed days later. Regardless the loss had wounded him more than he had ever cared to admit aloud.

But then there was the girl; his new love. Anna knew better than Magda what he was capable of and yet she wasn't running away from him. She accepted how he felt about her and embraced his love.

'_But how much so for the safety of her family?'_ he thought darkly to himself. That thought had been in the back of his mind for some time. He shook his head at the thought. Anna_ wanted_ to be with him. The only proof he needed was the look in her eyes whenever she was in his arms. Misplaced loyalty kept her from his side. Hopefully she would outgrow Charles and his band of dreamers as the years went on. Time would tell…

But until she was ready to move forward with her life could he truly be content with only seeing her once a week?

'_No. No, I won't be,'_ he concluded: hardly needing a second to admit it.

"…You okay, Max?" Rogue asked slightly assumed: snapping him out of his thoughts. He glanced over at her. She was standing beside him: her brown trench coat covering her body. Her gloved hand rested gently on his shoulder.

"…I'm- I'm fine," he said as he smiled reassuringly at her. "You've just given me something to think about," he explained.

"I know it's kind of a painful subject for ya, but do you wanna talk about it?" she asked.

"Perhaps another time," he said. "For now, let us get on our way. I don't wish to cause you to break your promise," he said.

"Thanks," she smiled before she gave him a quick peck on the lips. He smiled as she turned towards the exit: walking. He followed her. "I'm in enough trouble as it is," she said rolling her eyes. He let out a short snort as she opened the front door.

"Charles shouldn't reprimand you for one lapse in schedule," he said as they exited the house.

"I know but you can understand why he's gonna freak out, right?" he asked.

"I suppose," he uttered as she turned to face him.

"Look, if this ever happens again, just take me home on time. I understand why ya didn't and I appreciate it. But right now the battle I'm fighting is making Prof kinda comfortable with all this. The only way that's gonna work is if I leave and come back _exactly_ when I said I was gonna. Okay?" she asked. He let out a sigh. "I know you don't give a shit about having his approval and that's not what I'm asking. Just things will be easier for us if he's kinda comfortable with it," she reminded him.

"Alright, I promise," he said.

"Thanks," she said with smile before she leaned up and gave him a peck on the lips. "Now could you turn off the inhibitor field please?" she asked.

"Certainly," he said as he used his powers to do as she requested.

"It's off?" she asked as she looped her arms around his neck.

"It is," he answered as he placed his hands on her hips. She pulled him down into a kiss. He let out a groan as she deepened it.

She pulled back a few moments later as he took a deep breath.

"I might have ta do that again," she said.

"That's something I'd like to look into. Please remind me next Saturday," he said.

"Okay," she smiled as she removed her arms. "Race ya?" she asked as he watched her rise into the air. He chuckled.

"Not the best idea, I'm afraid," he said with mirth. "Just in case my powers fade, my girl," he said as he joined her in the air.

"Well, then for my sake I hope ya can keep up, old man," she smirked. Before he could object further she took off with as much speed as she could muster up into the clouds. He let out a sigh as he took off after her: the rift in the clouds she had created was the path he followed.

In his mind he saw a flash of her from the past: in the van bloody and broken. Was that how he would find her again if he didn't catch up to her in time? Seeing her like that, days ago, had- it had changed his perspective of everything regarding their relationship. He couldn't handle the sight of his love nearly dying again.

'_I won't allow it,'_ he thought determined, flying as fast as he could as his heart was beating violently in his chest.

A minute later he finally caught sight of her. He followed her: attempting to gain on her. But her youth, matched with his abilities and knowledge gave her a slight advantage over him in a contest of speed. He wondered for a moment what else she could best in him: before he shook his head dismissing the thought as quickly as it had occurred_. 'Now is not the time,'_ he told himself. "Anna," he yelled out. "You shouldn't be so careless… Anna," he screamed.

She hadn't heard him.

He took a deep breath.

'_I can see her. If my powers fade I'll have more than enough time. She must know that,' _he thought to himself. _'Of course, she knows that, it's _Anna_,' _he thought with more conviction. So, he followed behind her, watching as she flew. He heard her laugh as she flew in a loop in the air. He started to relax at that sound. She was just having a little fun: that was all.

She flew in another loop: this one slower and larger than the one before it. It gave him enough time to fly up to her. He caught her in his arms: her back to his stomach. She pulled away from him quickly, only to turn herself to face him: wrapping her arm around his neck again. She smiled at him before she pulled him into another kiss. He groaned at the contact. He was still becoming accustomed to the feeling of his energies flowing out of him. She pulled away from him a moment later. The smile that had graced her face until now was noticeably absent.

"Max, I-" she started to say, "I didn't mean ta make ya worry. I knew what I doing," she told him.

"I realized that, my girl," he said with a sigh. "Go," he said pushing her gently from his arms, "have your fu-," he started to say before she glanced down. "Anna, what is it?" She let out a sigh.

"We're already here," she said as he glanced down. Between following her lead and the clouds that surrounded them, he hadn't even noticed.

"So, this is farewell, until next Saturday," he said.

"Yeah," she sighed as he cupped her cheek. She wrapped her arms around his back as they kissed once again. "See ya at the cafe, Max," she said.

"Good bye, Anna," he said as she slipped out of his arms. He watched her float down to the ground before he flew away.

* * *

Rogue walked through the hallway in sublevel seven. She had learned from the Professor moments before that everyone was starting to gather there. She let out a sigh as she walked into the conference room they always used for meeting like this. Only Scott and Jean were present so far.

"Hey, Rogue," Jean said with a smile.

"Hey, Jean. Hey, Scott" she said as she took a seat next to her.

"Hey," he nodded.

"How was your night?" Jean asked.

"We heard you didn't come home," Scott said with a raised eyebrow.

"I fell asleep the second I got to Magneto's. Slept for twelve hours straight again," she explained.

"You must have been tired," Jean said with sympathy.

"I was exhausted," Rogue sighed as the Professor, and Ororo made their way into the room. "The last few weeks have just been fucking crazy. I've been on edge every since I got back to the institute and I think I'm _finally_ starting to come down from that," she said as Ororo sat down.

"That's good," Jean smiled as the Professor took his place at the head of the table.

"Yeah," Rogue sighed. "How was your night?" she asked.

"We watched a couple of movies," Scott answered.

"There was a _debate _between Thirteen Ghosts and Moulin Rouge," Jean said with a slight smirk.

"We watched both," Scott said dryly.

"So, it was a typical Saturday night?" Rogue asked with a smile.

"Yeah," Jean answered with a smile.

"I can't wait till the danger room's rebuild," Scott muttered. Jean and Rogue shared a look before laughing softly. "What's so funny?" Scott asked.

"Nothing," they both answered quickly as Logan and Mr. McCoy walked into the room.

"Let's get started, shall we?" the Professor said as Mr. McCoy and Logan took their seats. She and Jean shared one more smile before they both turned toward the Professor, given him their attention.

"Where do you want me start, Prof?" Rogue asked.

"Everyone in this room has been present for some of the discussion but not all. I believe I am the only who knows nearly as much as you do," the Professor said.

"I'm not gonna have ta go over everything again, am I?" she sighed. "That is not gonna help me recover," she added.

"I agree," the Professor said. "No, I'll surmise," he said. Rogue let out a sigh as she prepaid herself to hear the events of the past two months from his perspective.

* * *

Rogue let out a sigh as she listened to the Professor speak. As expected there was the usual amount of disgust and anger towards Magneto. She was so tired of having this conversation.

'_Today's gonna be the last time,_' she thought determined.

* * *

"So, it was during that conversation that I learned that Rogue was being blackmailed by Magneto," Charles

"Sorry, for lying to you two," Rogue said to Scott and Jean. "But I shouldn't have told, Prof," she explained.

"It's okay," Jean said.

"Speaking of which, how was the accident his fault?" Charles asked. Rogue let out a sigh.

"It wasn't an accident," Rogue said. Charles glanced over at her with a raised eyebrow.

"I'll explain that in a minute," she said quickly. "I feel like an idiot for not checking. I just- with the stupid cameras in places I assumed that was all he was gonna do ta keep an eye on me. I should've known. I should've _checked_," she said mostly to herself.

"Magneto overlapped the fragment again?" Hank asked. Rogue nodded. "Once you were outside he told you," Hank guessed. Rogue nodded again with a sigh.

"Magneto threatened to take you again?" Ororo asked. Rogue nodded sadly.

"Man, so if Juggernaut hadn't of shown up Magneto would've just kidnapped you again?" Scott asked in disbelief. Rogue nodded; although he saw anger in her gaze. He watched her hands ball.

"Rogue, are you okay?" Jean asked.

"No," she answered: shaking her head. "I can't talk about this without really needing to punch something. I'm trying my best to keep myself together right now," Rogue said as she made eye contact with the Professor.

"You're doing fine, child," Ororo said gently. Rogue smiled slightly at that before her facial expression returned to full anger. He watched Rogue close her eyes and take a deep breath.

"Magneto's people were actually looking for Juggernaut before he came to the institute," Rogue said. "I can't tell ya all why or where they were looking," she said before she took another deep breath. "What I can say is that Juggernaut was nowhere near the fucking institute an hour and half before he showed up. There's no way he could've gotten here by himself in time," she said.

"Someone helped him?" Scott asked.

"Someone _teleported _him," Rogue said bitterly.

"Who?" Jean asked. He watched Rogue take a deep breath.

"Her name's Agatha Harkness: an old friend of Irene's. She used to babysit me when I was little," Rogue said as tears formed in her eyes.

"Oh my god," Charles muttered to himself as he Ororo, Hank and Logan all looked at one another. He knew that the same thought was running through all their minds: how much more pain was this one woman going to be responsible for?

"I looked at Cain's memories," Rogue said as she stared at the table in front of her blankly.

"Rogue, you don't have to explain now," Charles started to say. Rogue shook her head.

"Let's just get this over with. I don't wanna keep thinking about this. I'm trying so hard not to," she said desperately. "I just- I can't take this pain anymore," she said.

"You don't have to," Charles said. "Lead me to the memory. I'll watch it. You will not have to relive this again," he said. She glanced away from him a moment: her eyes going distant.

"… Promise you won't go looking at anything else," she said softy as she met his gaze. Charles let out a sigh. Who was the one attempting to control the flow of information now? Hadn't she gotten anger at him for doing just this? "I know it might seem hypocritical of me, but you were there at the truce. You saw how complicated it was. There's just- there's just stuff he doesn't want anyone to know about him, that I do.

"Protecting his secrets _is _protecting the truce and the safely of everyone who lives here. I don't wanna go back to fighting him. I didn't wanna fight him even when I was," she exclaimed as Charles let out another sigh. "I know it's frustrating and I'm sorry for that. But you gotta see that this is so much_ better_ than the way things were late week, right?" she asked tears in her eyes. "I don't just mean for me. 'Cause I don't have ta lie anymore or worry about slipping up, saying the wrong thing and him taking me again cause of it. All the old threats he used ta throw around they're _gone_," she smiled. "He can't use them anymore or he loses my trus-"

"I know, Rogue," Charles said before he let out another sigh. "And I understand why you're asking me to make this promise. I read the fragment's mind out of concern for you but I know that had shaken your truth in me," he said.

"You were _right_ about Magneto overlapping the fragment," Rogue said. "If he wasn't blackmailing me at the time I would've been looking too," she said. "And I still trust you. I just know you think I ain't capable of protecting myself when it comes ta him because of Stockholm Syndrome. But I'm actually happy with our relationship right now: it' almost entirely on my terms which is so fucking nice. But you're still worried about me, so I know you're gonna do what you think you have to to protect me. I just- I don't want you putting everyone else in danger to stop something I don't want you to stop."

"You've made that very clear, Rogue. But if any of the other teenagers had stayed out all night with their boyfriends how would you suggest I react?" he asked.

"Maybe with understanding and compassion considering how shitty of a month this teenager has been having. I didn't mean ta fall asleep, Prof. I really didn't. Plus, I already made him promise to take me home on time no matter what," she said; Charles let out a sigh at that. Of course, she had made him promise that. "So, this ain't gonna happen again," she said strongly. "I'm sorry I didn't think of it before and make it part of the truce," she said.

"Rogue, you have nothing to apologize for," Charles said. "It's not your job to think of every possible contingently plan under the sun. We're a _team_. The burden of that responsibly is supposed to be _shared_." he said.

"He wouldn't let it be," she said sadly.

"I know," Charles said desperately. "And I'm sorry you were alone for so long," he said.

"It's not your fault, so stop blaming yourself," she said. Charles was taken aback by her statement. "We can't go back and change it. And right now aside from dealing with all the Irene bullshit and the trauma I'm in a good place. You all care about me as much I care about all of you. Why else would we be having this meeting?" Rogue asked with a smile.

"I've got the love and dedication of the world's most powerful mutant. Magneto is gonna personally work for me to learn how to control my powers. I haven't had a single nightmare in nearly a month. The flashbacks still get to me sometimes but I'm learning ta control it. I'm talking to older brother again. Kurt calls me his sister and I didn't have to fucking corrupt him with all the mess up shit about Mystique's past for that to happen," she laughed through her tears.

"And it turns out my dad gives a shit about me," she laughed in disbelief. "He has for _years_ and just couldn't contact me because fucking Irene wouldn't let him. I know you're angry at yourself, Prof," she said her eyes quickly shifting to his, "because you didn't know about the nightmares. I should have told you, it was just so hard ta think back then with all the fucking screaming. And I know you're angry at Magneto for all the lies. And I've lies so many times to everyone in this room for the past month and I'm so sorry about that. I felt like I didn't have a choice," she ranted: her voice cracking with emotion.

"Magneto put you in an impossible situation. You did the best you could," Ororo said as she handed her a tissue. Rogue took it from her with a sad smile.

"We're all together as a family: that's' what matters right?" Scott said with a smile. With that a huge smile came to Rogue face. She laughed and cried simultaneously. "That morning: is that when you got back to the institute?" he asked.

"What morning?" Logan asked.

"February eighth," Rogue answered. "Actually… I got back really late the night before, but that morning was the first time I saw ya all in nearly two weeks. It took so much will power to keep myself from just _hugging _everyone. I was so happy to be back," she smiled though her tears. Jean put her hand on Rogue's arm as Rogue wiped tears away from her eyes. Charles felt tears in his own eyes. A quick glance around the room showed him he was not the only one.

"And I'm really glad we're having this conversation. A week ago I don't know what I would've done ta be able to talk ta ya all so honestly. It is nice not having ta lie anymore," Rogue said happily. "Fuck, we got off topic," she laughed.

"It's alright," Charles said with a smile. He watched her take a deep breath.

'_Prof,_ _maybe you and_ _Jean could work together to show everyone the memory?'_ Rogue offered. He let out a sigh.

'_Therefore, giving me no time to look elsewhere?'_ he asked curiously.

'_If I was trying to manipulate you, Prof, I've would've said it out loud and ya wouldn't have had a choice after everyone said what a good idea it is. I'd feel more comfortable if there was a witness or if you gave me your word. Like I said, I still trust you. But I've been though too damn much ta leave these things to chance, okay?' _she asked. He let out a sigh.

'_Alright, I promise,'_ he told her. She opened her eyes a moment later.

"You okay, Rogue?" Scott asked.

"I'm fine," she said with a smile. "And I'm ready whenever you are, Prof," she said meeting his gaze.

"Excuse us for a moment," Charles said to everyone as he back away from the table. He moved up to Rogue as she turned her chair to face him.

"How long is this gonna take?" Logan asked.

"I'm not sure," Charles answered honestly.

"Memory ain't that long," Rogue said before she closed her eyes again. Charles closed his eyes taking a deep breath as he moved his hands near to the sides of her face. Not touching her of course, but his hands were close enough to help him with the connection. Charles drove into Rogue's mind; searching through her memory.

'_It's right here, Prof,' _Rogue thought as she pulled up the memory he needed.

'_Thank you,'_ he said as he took hold of it and went closer:

**Charles felt himself take his place in the memory through his brother's eyes. He felt himself as Cain running through the woods. He was being chased: he was scared of being recaptured. He had escaped two days ago from Magneto's base. But still they kept closing in on him. They had trackers on their sides, individuals who didn't need to sense his mind in order to find him. It was beyond frustrating. **

**An old woman appeared before him; out of thin air. He prepared himself to attack her.**

"**Stop, Cain Marko, I mean you no harm. My name is Agatha Harkness. Come with me if you wish to escape. I will take you to Charles Xavier's: allow you the chance to take your revenge on your brother," she said. He could hear Magneto's henchman gaining on their location. He didn't have time to ask too many questions. So, he asked what he assumed was most important.**

"**How do I know you ain't with Magneto?" he asked. **

"**Then we have you surrounded and it hardly matters what choice you make. I, however, work Irene Alder. She's an old friend and she's asked me for a favor: saving you," **

"**Why the fuck would she want that?" he asked.**

"**She has her price. We will need you to deliver a message," she said. **

"**What message?" he asked. **

"**I will come to you with this message, and whom you must deliver it too but not now. You are not to know until I come to you again. Can you agree to these terms?" she asked. Cain smirked. **

'_**Dumb bitches, I'll just say no when she asks me later,'**_** he thought. "Sure, I'll do it," he said.**

"**Then take me hand, Cain Marko," she said as she held it out. He smirked as he took it. He heard the old woman mutter something under her breath: in a flash they were someone else. He was still in the woods, but different woods then before. He was sure of it. **

"**This isn't Xavier's," he yelled as he put his hand on her shoulder: he tightened his grip. **

"**How observant," she said dryly before she teleported away. **

"**Fuck," he screamed. **_**'Where the fuck am I now?' **_**he asked as he started to walk again. **

"**I will bring you to Xavier's soon," he heard her again. He quickly turned around to see her standing a few feet away from him. "For now we wait," she said. **

"**For what?" he shouted. **

"**Irene has warned me of your character. Be patient or I shall make you wait in fire," she said. **

"**Yeah, right," he laughed. He laughter quickly turned into a scream as his body was surrounded by fire. It touched every part of his skin; burning him from the inside out.**

Charles quickly pulled out of the memory as he felt himself become too absorbed in the pain Cain was experiencing.

"Professor, are you okay?" Jean asked. He took a deep breath as he nodded.

"I just need a moment," he said.

"… You got to the part where Agatha set him on fire?" Rogue asked after he had opened his eyes.

"Yes," Charles nodded.

"Which time?" Rogue asked. Charles eyes snapped to hers confused. "It was an illusion he wasn't actually on fire. She just made him think he was," she explained. "… _Three_ times. Your brother's a dumbass," Rogue said dryly. "… If you wanna see the rest of it, skip ahead an hour and seven minutes," she told him. He nodded before he closed his eyes; reentering her mind. Charles followed Rogue's instructions.

**Cain sat begrudging on the ground about a foot away from Agatha. So maybe attacking the witch hadn't of been the best idea once he learned what she could do to him. But he couldn't stand waiting; doing nothing. He had had years of being trapped. He wanted action. **

**He glanced up at Agatha as he heard a phone ring. **

"**Yes, Irene?" Agatha asked. **

"**Thank you, old friend for doing this. Magneto left, and she is alone, you know what to do," a voice from the phone said.**

"**Yes, I do, Irene. You are certain the girl can handle this?" Agatha asked. **

"**She will learn to handle worse. You know what I am preparing her for," Irene said.**

"**Yes, you have explained before," Agatha said.**

"**My visions have not changed. She must walk this path for all our sakes. The timing is perfect, go now," Irene said before Agatha grabbed onto his shoulder. The next thing he knew he was standing in front of Xavier's alone.**

"**Heh," he laughed, "don't know what the fuck they were talking about. I don't give a shit either" he said to himself as he started his march onto the grounds. **

Charles let out a sigh as he pulled out of the memory. He moved back to the head of the table as he took a moment to inform everyone else, besides Rogue, telepathically what he had just witnessed.

"Rogue do you have any idea what she's trying to prepare you for?" Mr. McCoy asked.

"No," Rogue said shaking her head. "I have no idea. Whatever it is, she's been planning it for at least sixteen years, maybe more," she said in disbelief. "What scares me the most is when she said 'she will learn to handle _worse._' What the fuck is she gonna throw at me next?" she asked in anger as Charles watched her body start to shake in fear.

"Rogue," Jean said concerned as she placed her hand on her back. The contact helped to clam her a little. Rogue closed her eyes taking deep breaths.

"We will do everything in our power to find out," the Professor said.

"I'm certain Magneto will also offer his aid," Ororo said.

"I haven't told him yet," Rogue shrugged.

"Why not?" Scott asked.

"I'm just not ready for him to know that Irene manipulated again," she said.

"Again?" Scott asked.

"Fuck," Rogue said under her breath. "Everyone _please_ forget I said again," she said.

"What exactly are we forgetting?" Mr. McCoy asked with a smile.

"I'm not sure," Jean said smiled. "Scott, do you remember?"

"No, and I glad I don't," he said. Rogue let out a soft laugh.

"Thanks," Rogue smirked; her body still shaking slightly in fear.

"I believe that's enough for one day. I do still have a few more questions but what we said earlier is correct. You need time to heal from everything that has happened. So, I'll reframe from bring up these topics. Unless you _want_ to talk about them," Charles said.

"Thanks," she said again.

"Of course," he said with a small smile.

* * *

Thank you for reading! :) Please review!


	55. Chapter 54

Happy Birthday Flower of Fire!

Please enjoy!

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Fifty-Four

Magneto stood in his kitchen as he finished washing the dishes that they he and Rogue had used earlier that day. As he had been washing them a thought had occurred to him: a question actually. Something he had meant to ask her days ago but it had kept slipping his mind. He dried his hands with a towel before he walked over to the phone and picked it up. He dialed a number and waited for someone to pick up.

"Xavier Institute," a young male voice answered.

"Good afternoon, Mr. Wagner, ma-" he asked.

"_M-magneto_?" he asked nervously.

"Yes, Mr. Wagner. May I please speak with Rogue?" he asked.

"Hmm… I'm not really sure where she is right now," he said.

"Is she still speaking with Charles?" he asked.

"Hmm… I'm not sure," he answered.

"You could perhaps _contact_ Charles and ask?" Magneto suggested dryly.

"Kurt, who is it?" he heard Ms. Pride ask.

"It's Magneto," he answered in a hushed voice.

"Does he want to talk to Rogue?" she asked in a whisper.

"Yes," Magneto said loudly. There was a long pause.

"Could you hmm, like, hang on for a minute?" Ms. Pride asked. He had been excising patients for the past few days but honestly he didn't feel like waiting with his ear to the phone.

"Just tell Anna that I would like to speak to her one last time today. She knows how to contact me," he said.

"Hmm, okay," she said.

"Thank you, Miss Pride," he said before he hung up the phone.

* * *

Charles watched everyone in sublevel seven heading for the exit as Kitty came into the room with the phone in her hands.

"Hmm, Rogue," Kitty said as the others left the room. Rogue, Kitty and himself were the only one's still present.

"Yeah, Kitty?" Rogue asked as she stood up.

"Magneto called," she said uneasy.

"Did he say why?" she asked.

"He just said he wanted to talk to you one more time today," she shrugged.

"Thank you, Kitty," Charles said as he watched Rogue take the phone from her. Rogue met his gaze as Kitty walked out of the room.

"Do you have any idea why he might be contacting you again so soon?" Charles asked. Rogue shook her head no. Charles let out a sigh.

"Might as well get this over with," she said before she dialed a number on the phone.

"Put it on speaker, please," Charles said. Rogue nodded as she took a seat next to him.

"Hello?" Magneto answered.

"Hi, Max. Is everything okay?" Rogue asked: a mix of concern and suspicion in her voice.

"Everything's fine. Nothing has changed," Charles heard Magneto said quickly as he heard typing in the background.

"So, what's going on then?" she asked.

"There's something I needed to ask you," he answered.

"And where was this question earlier today when I _asked_ you if there was anything you needed to ask me?" she asked with mirth. Magneto let out an annoyed sigh. "Are ya losing your patients?" she asked.

"A bit, yes," Magneto answered.

"Took long enough," she said. "Thanks," she added. "You've been really sweet lately," she said. Charles kept himself from making any comments. Although many thoughts run through his head: none of which he knew either of them would want to hear.

"Can I assume that you _appreciate_ that?" Magneto asked. Charles couldn't help but let out a frustrated groan.

"I must sound like a broken record," Rogue mused as she stood up.

"Nevertheless, I appreciate your appreciation," Magneto said jokingly.

"Jackass," she said with a soft laugh_. 'Prof, ya really wanna hear the rest of this conversation?'_ she asked as Magneto chuckled.

'_Not particularly,'_ he thought dryly. Rogue nodded as she started to walk away from him.

"So, what's so important that it couldn't wait till Saturday?" she asked into the phone as she turned the speaker off. Charles let out a sigh as he watched her walk out of the room.

* * *

"Honestly, it could have waited. I simply didn't want to forget about it again. And I should know where it is," Magneto said to Rogue through the phone as he sat in front of his computer in his office.

"Know where what is, Max?" she asked.

"My _car_," he answered dryly. There was a pause. "Anna?" he asked.

"Okay- just- before I tell you where it is, just- do us both a favor and remind yourself how much that car meant to you," she said before pausing. "So, are you feeling utterly indifferent yet?" she asked. He couldn't help but smile.

"Is it still in one piece?" he asked with mirth.

"Yes…," she said uneasy, "I mean, I'm pretty sure it is. That's the way I left it," she added.

"And where did you leave it_ exactly_?" Magneto asked.

"Well," she started to say.

* * *

Twenty minutes later Magneto stood in front of a lake. Yes, a _lake_. He stared blankly at the bummer of his car, as that was all he could see of it. The rest of it was submerged in water;_ ruined_. With a sigh he used his powers to lift the car out of the lake.

'_It is just a car,'_ he told himself for the countless time.

* * *

Magneto walked into his café Saturday morning just five minutes before ten am. He saw Anna, sixth in line, waiting to be served at the front counter. He noticed his girl was eyeing the pastries in the glass display cabinet.

"Good morning, Anna," he said as he walked up beside.

"Morning," she said with a yawn before she covered her mouth with her hand. "How are ya?" she asked as she moved her hand back to her side: her eyes meeting his.

"I'll been well," he said pleasantly. "How are you?" he asked.

"I'm doing okay right now," she said with a smile. He restrained himself from leaning down to kiss her.

"Would you like something to drink?" he asked.

"Hell, yes," she answered. He chuckled as he put his hand around her shoulder and glided her off of the line. "Tea, Earl Grey, plus, I kinda want one of those bear-claws," she said as she glanced back of the counter. He smirked.

"Just one?" he asked.

"Yeah," she said with a yawn.

"I'll meet you in the back room in a moment," he said as she made eye contact.

"I can help ya carry stuff, Max," she said.

"I can assure you, I'll manage," he said with a smile.

"Ya sure?" she asked. He nodded promptly. "Okay, see ya in minute then," she said as she turned away from him. He watched her go as he walked up to the counter

"Good morning, Miss. Johnson," Magneto said to the cashier as he walked behind the counter.

"Ahh- good morning Mr. Lensher," she said surprised. "Can I get you anything?" she asked as she quickly made three cups of coffee.

"No, that's alright. You have your hands full enough as it is," he said as he got two cups and started to make the tea for her and coffee for himself. "Tend to the line. I'll handle my order," he said.

"Thank you, sir," she said as he before he turned his attention back to his task.

* * *

"Here you go," Rogue heard Max said a few minutes later. She glanced up from her seat on the couch to see him holding out a cup for her.

"Thank you," she said with a smile as she took it. She watched him take a seat beside her as he placed a paper bag on the table in front of them.

"My pleasure," he said with a smile as she took off one of her gloves. She reached forward with and put her gloveless hand in the paper bag as she took a sip of her tea. She let out another yawn. "Tired?" he asked: slightly concerned as she took a bear-claw out of the bag.

"You know how much I hate being awake on Saturdays," she commented with a smile.

"You the one who choose the date, my girl," he reminded her.

"Me? Max, you wanted the whole weekend. We were arguing about it for over an hour before we came to this compromise," she told him.

"Did we?" he asked with raised eyebrow.

"Yeah," she answered before she took a bit out of her bear-claw.

"How's everything at the institute?"

"The usual," she said bluntly as she refused to make eye contact with him. "So, what are we doing today?" she asked changing the subject.

"Breakfast, seems to be first on our agenda," he said.

"After that?" she asked.

"Training your powers," he said as she watched him take out a stop watch. He placed it on the table. She eyed the watch curiously as she took another bite.

"What are we timing?" she asking.

"I'd like to use the same theory with your physical powers as we did with your mental ones. Rather than focus on the aspects of your powers you can't control on your own. We're going to have you master small aspects that are. But, of course, in order to gain control of any sort we have to learn how your powers work, the rules so to speak. We going to start with how long an absorption lasts," he said as she finished eating her bear-claw.

"Okay," she said as he created a small metal ball.

"We're going to start with one figure tip for one second," he said he moved the object out of his hand and into the air. "Once we've touched I want you to hold this ball in the air _here_," he said as she glanced over at the ball; noting where it was. "Once the ball starts to drop, I will assume that my powers have faded and pause the stopwatch. We'll going to repeat the test five times in a row for one second, and we'll see what our average is. This process should give us a fairly actuate reading," he said.

"Okay," she said with a slight smile.

"Also, I want you to keep your mind clear when you're touching me, and only considerate on keeping the ball in the air. Other than that think of nothing," he said.

"You think what I'm thinking about can affect the absorption?" she asked.

"I don't know. It's something I'd to test. But one experiment at a time, my girl," he said as he held out his hand to her. "Shall we?" he asked. She answered him by touching him for one second. She heard him start the stopwatch as she took control of the metal ball in the air; holding it in place.

* * *

"Sixty seconds," Max said a minute later after the ball had fallen.

"Exactly?" she asked.

"Exactly," he confirmed as he showed her the watch. "Again," he ordered as he held out his hand. She touched him once again.

* * *

"Sixty seconds," he said again.

"Really?" she asked.

"Yes," he said.

"Huh," she huffed.

"Again," he said with a smile.

* * *

"Sixty seconds," they said in unison. He glanced up at her she smirked at him.

"Are we really gonna do this two more times?" she asked.

"Once more should suffice," he said.

* * *

"Let me guess, _sixty seconds_," she asked with a smirk as Max glanced down at the watch.

"Indeed," he smirked. "It seems that your powers have a one to sixty ratio. It least, that's how it appears. This time two seconds," he said. She answered him by touching him again.

* * *

Once the ball drop again Rogue glanced up at Max. There was a look of amazement on his face.

"Two minutes?" she guessed.

"Yes," he laughed. "You're powers have a _measurable_ ratio," he said in disbelief as he glanced up from the stopwatch. "I was not expecting that," he said with a smile. She returned his expression. He glanced down at her lips before turning back to the stopwatch. "Two more times," he commanded.

"What?" she asked.

"Three times for each test going forward and I will be convinced," he said. She let out a sigh. "What are you sighing about precisely?" he asked with a chuckle.

"Do you know how much work it takes to not think about anything; _in my head_?" she exclaimed.

"Tired," he asked again.

"No," she said.

"Bored?" he asked.

"Kinda," she said. A smirk appeared on his face before he stood up. He walked over to the bookshelf behind the couch. Picked up a pair of black gloves and put them on.

"We could just make the tests more _interesting_," he said walked back to the couch and sat down again.

"Interesting how?" she asked with a raised eyebrow. She watched him pick up her glove and hand it to her. She took the hint and put it back on.

"I think you can guess," he said as he reach forward and took hold of her waist. She let out a soft laugh as he pulled her onto his lap. She placed her hands on his shoulders. "Any notions come to mind?" he asked as he ran his hands over her back.

"Fuck, that feels good," she muttered as she closed her eyes. He chuckled. "You have an inhibitor field here, right?"

"Of course," he answered.

"You wanna take a break?" she asked.

"_Later_," he chuckled. "For now," he said as he hands rested at her hips, "we continue training," he said as she opened her eyes. "A two second kiss," he said.

"What am I gonna do on your lap for two minutes?" she asked.

"_That's_ the interesting part," he smirked as he leaned in slightly. "Same rules as before, keep the ball up until my powers fade," he said.

"Ya want me to keep anything _else_ up while I'm at it," she smirked as she rubbed against him playfully.

"If you wouldn't mind," he chuckled. She laughed softly as his lips met hers. She used his powers to bring the ball back up into the air as he pulled back from the kiss a moment later: he heard him click the stopwatch on. "Close your eyes," he whispered in her ear. She grinned as she did what he asked. His hands move up and down her back: massaging her as she let out soft moans.

* * *

Magneto heard Rogue let out a moan in protest as he stopped the massage.

"Two minutes," he said with a chuckle. He watched her open her eyes and glance down at him. "Again," he smirked before he kissed her. _'One, two, three,'_ he counted to himself before he quickly pulled away and started the stopwatch. "Don't forget the ball, Anna," he reminded her. Once she lifted it back into the air he resumed the massage. He couldn't help but smirk as he felt her use his powers to undo the clasp on her bra. "Since you asked so nicely," he chuckled as he moved his hands underneath her shirt onto her breasts. He heard her gasp as he took hold of her nipples; twisting them playfully. He let out a groan as she rubbed their groins together.

He watched the ball start to drop as he quickly paused the stopwatch with his powers. She let out a groan of frustration as he stopped his sexual advances. "Two minutes," he said as she opened her eyes. "Anna, would you mind taking off your shirt?" he asked.

"Fuck, no," she muttered: her breathing heavy. He let out a chuckle as he removed his hands from her person. He watched as she pulled her shirt up and over her head. She discarded it to the floor. Next she took off her bra, throwing it to the floor as they stared into each other eyes. "Now what?" she muttered as she ran her hand through her hair. He let his eyes wander over her body. He ran his hand down the front of her body. He watched her eyes close as he slowly ran his hands up and down her body.

"There's something I've been wondering about," he said as he moved one of his hands to hip.

"Yeah?" she asked as she placed her hands on his chest. He tugged her a little closer to him.

"We know that your skin absorbs," he said as he used his free hand to take off one of her gloves. He touched the tip of his finger to her finger nail. As he suspected touching it did not absorb him. "We know your hair doesn't," he said as he moved her hand into his hair. "Now, we know that you cannot absorb through someone else's hair or nails," he said.

"It has to be skin," she muttered.

"So, we've assumed. I'd like to confirm that once and for all," he said as before he leaned forward. He carefully angled his head as not to let any part of him touch her skin. He licked her nipple. A gasp escaped her mouth.

"I didn't absorb you," she muttered in disbelief; her tone thick with lust.

"I know," he leered before he licked circles around the nipple as he moved his hand to her groin. His other hand moved to her free breast. She moaned as he began to rub her down there over her pants. He stole another gasp from her as he put his full mouth on her breast: sucking on her nipple. _'One, two, three, four, five,'_ he thought before pulling away and starting the stop watch once again.

"We're still-" she started to ask.

"Yes, yes we're still continuing the tests," he said as she opened her eyes. "Are you still bored, my love?" he asked with a smirk as their eyes met.

"No," she laughed as he watched the ball rise into the air.

"Good," he smiled as he undid the zipper on her pants with his powers.

* * *

About an hour and a half later Rogue and Magneto laid naked in each other arms on the couch. Their breaths finally regulating, Rogue turned her head up to glance at him.

"Lunch?" she asked.

"Lunch sounds good… We should probably shower first," he added.

"You have a shower here?" she laughed as they started to sit up.

"Yes actually. Down the stairs, in one of the rooms down the hall," he said as he used his powers to open the bookshelf.

"That's useful," she said as she stood up.

"I've always thought so," he agreed as he stood up and followed her towards the door. "Would you like to go first?" he asked. She turned to face him placing her hands on his stomach.

She slowly ran her hands up his body and around her neck as she asked: "Who says we need to take turns?" she smiled. She rubbed the back of his neck.

"No one in particular made that rule," he smirked as he ran his hand down her sides. She kissed him.

"So, why should we follow it?" she asked as his hand caressed her butt. She lifted her leg up as his hands ran down the side of her leg.

"We simply shouldn't," he said as he took hold of her hips and lifted her up against him. She wrapped her legs around his waist as she pulled him to her lips. "Besides, we wouldn't want to waste the water," he added.

"Definitely not," she said with a straight face. A second later she felt a grin appear on her face as he chuckled. She laughed as she moved her hand to his cheek and pulled him into a kiss. "Get another condom," she ordered with a smile.

"Yes, commodore," he smirked. She let out a laugh before she pulled him into another kiss.

* * *

About three hours later Magneto sat in an arm chair in the back room of the café. Rogue sat on the couch. A Chess set sat between them on the glass table: as did the stopwatch, a few empty Chinese food containers, and the box Rogue's new cell phone had come in.

The small metal ball was once again being levitated by Rogue. They were in the middle of their longest test yet; seeing if the one to sixty ratios held up after a one minute absorption. They were also in the middle of their third game of Chess. Magneto had won the first game: Rogue the second.

"How long's it been?" she asked.

"Thirty-two minutes," he answered after a quick glance at the stopwatch.

"I meant since you last moved. You are taking _forever_," she complained. He glanced up to see a smirk on her face as she played with her new phone.

"I will take as long as I damn well please, Anna," he said.

"Can't blame a girl for trying," she grinned.

"I think, you will find that I can," he said as he turned his attention back to board. "Speaking of which," he started to say.

"Speaking of what?" she asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Why a lake, Anna?" he asked. He had asked her earlier while they were out getting food but she had shrugged off the question. She had been shrugging off a lot of his questions today, actually. He supposed he could understand; until now he had gained his knowledge from spying on conversations he was not meant to have witnessed. Now that control was in her hands she was claiming it, once and for all.

"I think you can guess," she quoted with a smirk as they made eye contact.

'_Not that she isn't skillful in her deflections,'_ he thought as he let out a chuckle. "Humor me?" he asked. She let out a sigh.

"I figured a bath would be bad for whatever kinda machine you were using," she shrugged.

"A wise assumption," he commented.

"Only 'cause I was right," she laughed. "If the inhibitor field was small enough for you to carry I would have been_ screwed_," she said. "… just like your queen," she added with a smirk. His eyes narrowed at the comment as he glanced over to the piece in question. It was currently threatened but her knight. He had been trying to figure out a way to save the piece. But her rook was in just the right position to check his king if he moved the queen itself. His pawns in this instance were useless. Actually limiting him in terms of where he could move.

He let out a sigh.

'_My queen is forfeit,'_ he thought in annoyance as he turned his attention to his king. Once the queen was lost to him, he knew she would go after the king. He had to think ahead to save the king and the game. Perhaps he could check her first: altering the focus of the game?

His eyes widened for a moment.

'_I almost missed that one,'_ he thought to himself. Part of him wanted to speak up and ask her to stop attempting to manipulate him, but he wasn't in the mood to be called a hypocrite so he decided against it. He could however keep redirecting the conversation himself. "How could you have known that Mr. Wagner would be present?" he asked.

"Cause I told Scott to bring him," she huffed. "Were not fighting anymore so what does it matter?" she asked annoyed.

"It doesn't, I suppose. I simply wish to understand how it was I was manipulated. I thought you might be able to relate to that," he said as he laid down his king.

"You don't wanna play anymore?" she asked confused.

"_This_ conversation is far more interesting," he said with a smile. She let out a sigh as she used his powers to reset the pieces.

"Maybe I'm tired of interesting conversations," she told him: taking him surprise. "Maybe I'm tired of talking about myself all the time. Maybe I just wanna try to forget about all the bullshit I've had to deal with, all the planning- just all of it. Playing Chess with you is fun. It was fun the first time we played. It's fun now. I know you've noticed the way I way I won't answer your questions. You and Prof are the only two who get what I'm doing."

"But it's not just you, Max. I'm not really talking to anyone, right now. I'm listening, 'cause I can handle that. But I'm tired of explaining. I hadn't even gotten dinner with Victor yet cause I know all he's gonna wanna do is hear about my life. A part of me- … I don't wanna explain anymore. So, can we please just play Chess?" she asked.

He let out a sigh as he moved a pawn forward.

"Thanks," she smiled as she turned her attention to the board.

"You're welcome," he said as she moved another piece.

* * *

By the way the birthday chapter offer is still on the table for anyone who would like to take me up on it. I've also decided I want to have a little more fun with this idea.

So, anyone who wants to take me up on it I was wondering if you would be willing to tell me something you would like to see in my fic: it can be anything, a situation, two people you would like to see have a conversation, a line or a word you would like to see in the chapter, a character you would like to see make an appearance. ANYTHING! I want to make it special for you, so you know that it is YOUR chapter.

And like Magneto, I enjoy the challenge. ^.^

If you don't want to give a suggestion of any kind, please let me know. This is totally optional! Either way there will be a new chapter posted on your birthday, if you want one!\


	56. Chapter 55

Hey, sorry it's been so long. I've been busy with work lately and studying to take a test for my life and health license. I'm finally done studying and had some time to work on the fic!

Please Enjoy!

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Fifty-Five:

Magneto sat with Rogue in the back room of the café. As it had turned out the one to sixty ratios held up after a one minute absorption. They were in the middle of testing to see if a two minute absorption held up to the ratio. They were also in the middle of their fifth game of chess.

"Ya know, there are _other_ games of strategy," Rogue said. Magneto glanced up from the board. That was the first sentence she had said, not related to her powers, in nearly an hour and a half.

"Such as?" he asked: partly out of curiosity: partly just to keep her talking.

"Risk, Hungary Hippos, Backgam-" she started to list.

"Wait a minute, _Hungry Hippos_?" he asked incredulously. "The game with the little plastic hippos and the marbles?" he asked in disbelief. A smirk formed on her lips.

"Yeah, all I just heard is that you've _actually played_ Hungry Hungry Hippos."

"Because, I have children," he said defensively.

"Uh-huh," she said amused as she turned her gaze back to the board.

"Three of them," he added.

"I know," she smirked.

"We played games together. That's what fathers are supposed to do," he said.

"I ain't disagreeing with you," she smiled before taking her turn: snickering under her breath. He let out a sigh.

"How_ precisely_ is relentlessly hitting a little plastic lever a game of strategy?" he asked.

"Ah yeah, the game I'm talking about ain't Hungry Hungry Hippos. It's _Hungary_ Hippos. Like the country," she said as she looked up at him. He stared at her blankly. "I'm guessing you've never heard of it," she said.

"No, no I haven't," he said dryly as he turned his attention back to the board. He tried to put his attention back to the game: she was on the verge of winning once again. He had to find a way to capture her queen. However, one thought kept pulling his focus askew. "Hippos aren't indigenous to Hungary," he muttered.

"No shit," Rogue smirked.

"Anna, not all of us remember details as easily as you do," he said with narrowed eyes. She let out a sigh as she met his gaze.

"Max, you know everything about me and family. It's easy to forget, even for me, that you don't know every little detail about everything else. Sorry, just sometimes, I have to remind myself that your drive to better mutant kind_ isolates_ you," she said.

"You think I isolate myself?" he asked in disbelief.

"… You don't see it?" she asked. He let a small army of mutants and owned several businesses: both operating internationally. His ventures, personal, business, and otherwise took him across the global on a weekly basis.

"Honestly, no," he answered.

"Well, you do," she shrugged as her eyes turned back to the board. His eyes followed suit. "…Do you wanna hear about the game?" she asked a few moments later.

"Sure," he said.

"At the turn of the nineteenth century when Europe was craving up Africa, Hungary didn't really have the resources to claim any of the land for themselves but they did send in about two dozen missionaries. They ah- learned some native game while they were there. I don't know the original name of it," she shrugged.

"Anyway, when the missionaries came home they brought it back with them. They changed some of the rules they didn't like, put in a few new ones they did and renamed it Hungary Hippos. It's been a favorite of the Hungarian people for generations. Didn't even lose its popularity when they became communists," she finished in a mutter.

"And how does one play this game?" he asked.

"I haven't actually played it myself. I've just seen it on the shelf at Toyrus a bunch of times. I looked at the box once. Kinda reminded me of Parcheesi," she said. "Ya know, but with hippos instead of harems," she added. Magneto stared at her in disbelief for a moment before he let out a chuckle at the comment. "You interested in playing?" she asked as she glanced up from the board.

"Why not?" he asked happily. She smiled at that.

"Last time I checked your schedule you were gonna be free on Monday night. That changed at all?" she asked.

"What date is that?" he asked.

"April first," she said. He tried to remember what it that was on his schedule for the first of the month. He had left his planner in his study. He honestly hadn't thought he'd need it.

"When was the last time you checked?" he asked.

"About a minute ago," she answered. He let out a chuckle.

"No, my schedule has not changed in the last sixty seconds," he answered with a laugh. "I would love to spend the evening with you, Anna," he added.

"Okay then," she said with a smile. "So, after you're done with your meeting, you'll head over to Toyrus and then come pick me up from the institute like six o'clock?" she asked.

"I could send someone else to purchase the game and pick you up a half an hour earlier," he said.

"I'm telling you right now, Max, if they get Hungry Hungry Hippos by accident, we're fucking playing it," she told him. He met her gaze, the smirk on her face told him she would love nothing more than for that exact accident to happen.

"Six o'clock it is," he said dryly. His comment was met with her letting out a short laugh.

* * *

Charles sat in the kitchen area, a book in his hands, as the clock stuck ten pm. With a sigh he scanned the institute but was pleased to find that Rogue was on her way in. He closed the book and went to meet her in the elevator.

"Hello, Rogue," Charles said as the lift's door opened. Rogue's gaze met his.

"Hey, Prof," she said as he entered the elevator.

"How was your day?" he asked.

"Fun," she answered with a slight smile. He shifted uncomfortably in his chair as he sighed. "You asked," she reminded him. Yes, so he had. "How was your day?" she asked.

"It was fine," he answered as the elevator doors opened. "…I know it's only been one day, but may I ask what progress you've made with your powers?" he asked: not really expecting an answer.

"They have a one to sixty absorption rate," she answered as she exited the lift. He blinked, surprised by the answer.

"Really?" he asked curiously as she waited for him to exit the elevator.

"Yup, we spent all day testing it from one finger tip touching another. Next week we're gonna see if a whole hand or if two hands makes the absorption last any long-" she started to say before she stopped midsentence.

"Rogue?" he asked concerned as he glanced up at her. Her face seemed to be deep in thought, although thankfully not in any type of emotional turmoil. She surprised him yet again when she pulled a cell phone out of her pocket. "Rogue, where did you get that?" he asked alarmed.

"I got it from Magneto," she answered as she dialed.

"So, now he has a means to contact you whenever he wishes," he said disgusted. Rogue rolled her eyes.

"So, now _everyone_ has a means to contact me. And_ I_ have a means to contact _everyone else_," she said annoyed. "Our communicators have a limited range. So, does telepathy. With Irene out there, planning to do god knows what to me next, don't you think it's a good idea for me to be able to call for help no matter where I am?" she asked. Charles let out a sigh: how was he supposed to argue with that?

"Anna? Is everything alright?" Charles heard Magneto ask from the phone.

"Yeah, everything's fine. I was filling Prof in on what we did today an-" Rogue started to say before Magneto interrupted her in German. Rogue let out a short laugh at whatever his comment was. He hated having to stand by for these comments, even if he didn't know what was being said.

"You're a jackass," she laughed. "Look, next week we're supposed to see if touching a larger surface of skin or more than one surface of skin lasts longer. But we already did that today and we got the answer to both questions."

"Did we?" Magneto asked thoughtfully. "I'm afraid, my girl, you're have to- oh, of course," he exclaimed: cutting himself off.

"So, where do we go from here?" she asked.

"Perhaps-" Magneto started to say. "How about we talk about this Monday night at dinner?" he asked.

"Dinner?" Charles asked with a raised eyebrow as Magneto added, "I could use a few hours to contemplate our options."

'_One second, Prof, sorry,'_ she thought to him before she said, "Yeah, we can talk it about then. I'll see ya at six," she said. Charles let out a frustrated sigh.

"Yes, you will," Magneto answered.

"Bye," she smiled before she hung up the phone. "I was gonna tell you about the dinner," she told him as she put the phone back in her pocket.

"And the phone?" he asked with a raised eyebrow.

"I already explained that," she said defensively as she crossed her arms over her chest.

"I'm sure his intentions were entirely noble," he said dryly.

"It's obvious he's happy that we can talk over the phone without someone having to come find me," she told him as she rolled her eyes. "But the other reason's still there and it's more important anyway," she said.

"I could provide you with a cell phone," he offered.

"And I'd give Magneto the number. Results the same," she told him. He let out a frustrated sigh as she opened the door to her room. "Besides if ya get me one, everyone's gonna want one," she added. That was true enough. "Look, I understand, that I'm taking a lot of liberties you ain't used to teenagers taking," she started to say as she entered the room.

"I'm supposed to be your guardian, Rogue. I am supposed to be the one taking care of you," he said as he watched her sat down on her bed. Kitty was sitting on her own bed: on her lap-top listening to music on her headphones.

"You do," she insisted.

"Only in the ways you'll allow me," he pointed out. He watched her eyes narrow.

"Should it be some other way?" Rogue started to say offended as Kitty started to take off her headphones. "Should you have the right the dictate what I'm allowed to do by your own code of conduct?" Rogue asked as Kitty's eyes widened and she put the headphones back on: staring back at the computer screen. "Shouldn't I have the freedom to live my life by _my_ _ideology_?" she asked annoyed.

"Of course, but there are situations where-" he started to say.

"So, your answer's no then?" she asked cutting him off.

"Please, let me finish," he said firmly.

"Fine, explain your exceptions that _completel_y contradict my question. _Please_, go ahead," she said sarcastically. He took a deep breath.

"You have been through incredible ordeals the past fe- I'm not sure for how many years, honestly. I just- I don't know when your trauma truly began. What I do know is that your experiences have taken a significant toll on your mental health. And you need time to heal," he said.

"So, I should just go crawl under a rock and not do anything until I start to feel better?" she asked incredulously.

"No, but I don't believe you should be spending time with someone who is partly to blame for your trauma," he said. She held his gaze for a moment before she laid back on the bed with a sigh.

"Are we gonna have this argument every week?" she asked: suddenly sounding exhausted. "My answer's not gonna change," she told him.

"I doubt mine will either," he said he said as he watched her kick off her shoes.

"So, are we?" she asked.

"I suppose that depends whether or not you're willing to have a conversation at all," he said. She let out a sigh.

"I'm tired of explaining myself, Prof. There is nothing I could say right now, that I haven't said already. So, why should I bother when all it does is annoy both of us? We're not gonna agree and I'm not gonna stop. Is whether or not I'm having sex really that important to you?" she asked incredulously. "Why?" she asked.

"Rogue, you know why," he said frustrated.

"You really wanna protect me?" she said as she sat up. "Find Irene," she said her eyes narrowed. "Please," she added her tone softened.

"Cerebro will be up and running by next Wednesday. I already plan to use it to find her, if I can," he added. He watched the anger in Rogue eyes fade.

"Thanks," she said earnestly.

"You're welcome," he said as the two of them held each other's gaze for a moment.

"Fuck, I hope it's that easy," Rogue said as she laid back down.

"We'll see," he said as he started to turn his chair. "Rogue?" he asked.

"Yeah?" she asked.

"You're at least-" he started to ask before faltering.

"Yeah?" she asked with raised eyebrow as she met his gaze again. He took a deep breath: extremely uncomfortable but as her guardian he had to ask this question. He should have asked her last week.

"You're at least using protection of some sort, aren't you?" he asked.

"Condom, every time," she answered. He nodded as he let out a sigh. "And I know for a fact that he doesn't want any more kids," she added.

"No, no I suppose he wouldn't," he said. "…Good night," he said as he exited the room.

"Goodnight," Rogue called out as he heard her fall back to onto the bed.

"Goodnight," Kitty said also added.

"Goodnight, Kitty," he said with a smile as he closed the door behind him.

"Sorry about that," he heard Rogue apologize as he moved slowly down the hall.

"Hey, like, don't worry about it," Kitty said dismissively. "So, like, how was_ your_ day?" she asked with a giggle.

"I found out I can't_ lick_ anyone to death," Rogue said: a smirk in her tone. Charles' eyes widened.

"Like how'd you find out?" she asked with mirth.

"The fun way," Rogue answered before Kitty started to giggle. Why didn't his chair move any faster? He desperately wanted to be out of earshot.

"Oh my god, tell me everything," Kitty exclaimed happily.

"So, we were starting to experiment with my powers and after a while just holding a ball up in the air was getting kinda boring," Rogue started to explain.

"Uh-huh," Kitty giggled.

Charles let out a sigh of relief as he moved far enough down the hall that he could no longer make out what they were saying.

* * *

Magneto walked through ToyRus on Monday afternoon hardly believing he was here to buy something for himself. He found himself in the board game session: he scanned the shelves for the game in question. He found Hungry Hungry Hippos easily enough, but not the game he was there to purchase.

"Excuse me," Max called out to one of the store's employees. He walked closer to the young man as the employee walked closer to him.

"There, something I can help with?" he asked.

"Yes, I'm looking for a board game called Hungary Hippos," Max said. The teen-aged boy looked behind him.

"Dude, it's right there," he said pointing. Max glanced to where to the employee had pointed. He let out a sigh.

"No, not Hungry Hungry Hippos. _Hungary_ Hippos, like the country," Max explained.

"…Yeah, we don't that game," he said.

"Are you certain?" Max asked; not appreciating the employee's attitude. The boy glanced past him onto the shelve behind him.

"…Yeah," he answered dryly.

"Perhaps you might have a one stored in the back?" he asked starting to get annoyed.

"Dude, not likely," he laughed. Max eyes narrowed.

"I'd like to speak to your manager," he demanded.

"Hold on," he said before he walked over to a phone. "Manager to idle* seven," he said into it. "…There some old guy looking for a board game," he explained. "…He wants someone to look in the back," he laughed as Magneto walked up to the employee.

"Jeremy, did you laugh when the customer asked you?" a woman asked him annoyed.

"Yes, he did," Magneto answered for him. "And I didn't appreciate the _old man_ comment either," he added dryly.

"Sir, you have, my apologizes, I will be with you in just a moment," she said before she hung up the phone.

A moment later he was greeted by a woman in her late thirties.

"I'm so sorry about that, sir," she said as she rushed up to them. "Jeremy, go upstairs and wait for me in my office," she ordered sternly. "Again, I'm very sorry about this, sir," she said as the teen walked off: muttering under his breath. "What board game are you looking for?" she asked.

"Hungary Hippos, I'm told it bares similarities to Parcheesi," Magneto explained. The woman raised an eyebrow.

"I'm… I'm not familiar with that game," she said. "Maybe one of our other stores has it. Follow me? I'll look it up for you," she offered.

"Thank you," he said with a smile before he allowed her to lead him to a computer.

"Let me see," she said as she started to type into the computer. "You said it was called Hungry Hippos?" she asked.

"Hungary, like the country," he said again. He waited patiently for her to search for it.

"…I'm sorry, sir. Our stores don't carry it," she said.

"Any of them?" he asked in disbelief.

"No, we don't have that game in stock anywhere," she told him. How long ago had Anna seen that game in one of their stores? With her memory it could have been over a decade ago. "Can I ask?" she started to ask pulling him out of his thoughts. "This person who asked you to get this game, are they prone to putting pranks?" she asked,

"Excuse me?" he asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Well, today is April fool's day," she offered with a slight smile. "Maybe someone's just pulling your leg," she said.

"What the hell is April fool's day?" he asked.

"Dude, seriously," the teenaged employee exclaimed amused. They both turned to see the boy from earlier standing a few feet from them: he was picking up a name tab off of the floor. Magneto's eyes narrowed in response to the employee's tone. "What rock have you been living under?" he laughed. Magneto eye widened at the comment.

"Jeremy, I said go upstairs," the manager yelled.

"I forgot my name-tab," he said rolling his eyes.

"I'm so really sorry about him," the manager said again.

"It's alright," he said distracted by the boy's words. "The- ah the woman who asked me to purchase the game she- what is this April fool's day?" he asked.

"Well, it ah- it's a holiday where people pull pranks on each other, tricks for fun mostly. I've sat on two whoopee cushions today," she said with a sigh. "That's my husband, king of comedy," she said sarcastically.

"How long has this holiday been in existence?" Magneto asked.

"I ah- I'm not sure exactly. It's been around as long as I've been alive," she shrugged.

'_Thirty years, at least,'_ he thought to himself. "Damn it," he muttered under his breath. "Thank you for your time," he said holding out his hand. She took it and they shook.

"Of course, sir, have a good day," she said before he turned to go.

"You as well," he said as before he quickly exited the store. He pulled out his cell phone: but paused before dialing. Who could he call? He needed more information about this holiday before he spoke with Rogue. Given its premise, he didn't trust her to give him accurate information. She had already lied to him once this week. "Damn it," he muttered again as he got to his car. He opened the door and got in. He sat in front seat as he weighed his options.

* * *

Any suggestions on who Magneto should call? ^.^

Thank you for reading and reviewing!


	57. Chapter 56

Please Enjoy!

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Fifty-Six

Magneto huffed in frustrated as he dialed a number.

"Hello, sir," Pietro said.

"Hello, son," Magneto said warmly. "Are you alone?" he asked. There was a brief pause: no more than two seconds.

"Now, I am," he replied: Magneto could hear the smirk in his son's voice.

"What can you tell me about April Fool's day?" he asked.

"It's today," his son replied: the slightest hint of a question in his voice.

"Aside from that," he asked.

"People pay pranks on other people. It supposed to be funny," he answered

"Supposed to be?" Magneto asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Well, it kind of depends on which side you're on," he said: with mirth in his voice. "You see, the person who's playing the prank is laughing _the whole time_. But the person the trick's being played on, they're not usually laughing. Whenever someone plays one on me I always plot my revenge," he answered.

"I see," he muttered: as he contemplated seeking to play a trick on Rogue. He quickly dismissed the thought. He didn't want to give her another excuse to be anger with him. And he hardly wanted to give Charles more ammo to turn his girl against him. "How long have you been participating in this holiday?" he asked.

"Since I was about five," he answered.

"Really?" he asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Yeah, Wanda and me used to go at it every year," he said with a smile. "I'd pull her hair, she would hide my toys, I would spit in her food. It would just escalate. We did some crazy stuff to each other," he smiled.

"And how was it I never became involved?" he asked curiously.

"_That_ was the line," Pietro laughed. "We could play as many jokes as we wanted on each other, but we could _never_ do anything that would catch _your_ attention. Father, if you had known what we were doing, you would have grounded the both of us so fast," he laughed.

"I suppose I would have," he chuckled as he opened up the glove-box and took out his planner. He looked over the rest of the week. "I think I would like to hear more about some of the tricks you two played while my back was turned. Are you busy at all, Thursday night?" he asked.

"No," he answered: sounding slightly surprised.

"Would you mind calling your sisters and asking them if they are available on Thursday night to get dinner?" he asked.

"No, I wouldn't mind at all," he answered a smile in his voice.

"Thank you. I think it would make the most sense to have the dinner in Hawai-" he started to say before there was a loud pinched scream in the background. "What was that?" Magneto asked: slightly alarmed.

"That was the sound revenge makes," Pietro answered a smirk in his voice.

"Pietro, I'm gonna kill you," he heard Avalanche scream.

"Dad, I really gotta go," Pietro laughed. "Can I call you later tonight after I talk to Wanda?" he asked: almost too quickly for him to understand.

"Of course, son," he answered.

"Gotta catch me first, Lance," he laughed tauntingly. "Thanks, dad," he smiled before as he hung up. Magneto hung up the phone with an amused huff.

"What else am I unaware of?" he asked himself in disbelief. He glanced at the watch on his wrist. It was nearly six o'clock. He let out a sigh as he started the car. He didn't want to be late.

* * *

Charles and Hank had just finished speaking to the institute's construction foreman when he felt Magneto's presence near the grounds. He let out a sigh as he saw a car pull up to the gates.

"So, is this going to become a regular occurrence?" Hank asked.

"It appears so," Charles said dryly as he watched as Magneto put a cell phone to his ear.

'_Prof?'_ he heard Rogue call out to him.

'_I know Magneto's here. Yes, he may enter the grounds,'_ he told her.

'_Thank you,'_ she thought before he watched Magneto close the phone. A moment later the gates opened and Magneto rode up as Charles made his way to the institute's entrance. He heard Magneto exit the car as he moved up to the elevator.

"Charles, Mr. McCoy," Magneto greeted with a nod.

"Magnus," he greeted in kind. "Or should I call you _Max_?" Charles asked bitterly. Magneto's eyes narrowed.

"I started using that alias before you were_ born_. For nearly fifty years it _was_ my name. Legally it is my name _still_," he started to reply.

"Because you hold the _legal system_ in such high regard," Charles commented cuttingly.

"I hardy need to apologize to _you_ for such matters, Charles," Magneto said. Both of them were on the cusps of another shouting match. He watched Magneto take a deep breath. "Perhaps, I should wait for Anna in the car," he said: calmer.

"Perhaps, you should," Charles agreed before the elevator opened.

"Hey," Rogue started to say with a smile as she exited the elevator. Her smile soon faltered. "Everything okay?" she asked in response to the obvious tension between them.

"Everything's fine," Magneto answered. "How are you, my girl?" he asked with a smile. Rogue walked up to him and put her hand on his arm.

"I'm fine," she smiled before she leaned up and gave him a kiss on the cheek: which lasted entirely too long in Charles' option. "How are you? Pissed?" she asked.

"Hardy," he said pleasantly. "I'm a bit confused, but I suppose that will pass," he said.

"After I'm done explaining everything to you, yeah you will be," she said with a smile. "I mean, if you still wanna get dinner tonight. I'll understand if you don't," she said. Where was this coming from?

"Yes, you played a _trick_ on me," Magneto started to say dismissively. Charles raised an eyebrow at the comment.

"You played an April fool's day joke on him?" Hank asked Rogue curiously.

"Yeah," she answered with a laugh in her voice as she let go of Magneto's arm. She was clearly amused. Magneto let out a sigh.

"What was the joke?" Hank asked as Rogue started to laugh softy. "Was it that funny?" he asked curiously.

"It depends which role one's plays in the trick, I've been told. You might find this amusing, Mr. McCoy," Magneto said. "We were playing chess last weekend and Rogue remarks that there are other games of strategy in existence. She starts listing them off: including one called _Hungry Hippos_," Magneto explained. "I've never heard of it naturally, _because it doesn't exist_," he said slightly annoyed as he glared at Rogue. She only continued to laugh softy to herself.

"Nevertheless," he said turning back to look at Hank, "she explains the game's _long_ and proud _history _with the people of hungry," he said mockingly: as Hank began to smile. "How their missionaries adopted the game from Africa tribes in the early nineteenth century. How its popularity endured the test of time: not wavering when the country became communist. The _details_ this woman came up with," he exclaimed before Rogue started to bust out in a fit of laughter: Hank laughed slightly himself. Magneto shook his head: a smile on his face.

"It's like _Parcheesi_, she says. Expect with hippos-" he started to say before he began to laugh himself.

"Yes?" Hank asked amused.

"Expect with _Hippos_ instead of _harems_," he said with a laugh. Hank and Magneto both laughed at the joke. "Ludicrous, isn't it that I fell for such a trick?" he asked amused.

"I heard Rogue argue before. She's very convincing," Hank started to say.

"You don't have to tell me," Magneto laughed.

"The date didn't make you suspicious?" Hank asked.

"Before today I was completely unaware of the holiday's existence," Magneto explained. Charles raised an eyebrow at that.

"Really?" Hank asked surprised. "Do you usually live in another country?" Hank asked: his mind searching for an explanation. "If you don't mind me asking?" he added almost immediately.

"Not at all," Magneto commented dismissively. "And no, I've residence within the U.S. for the last thirty years or so. I can't account for my lack of knowledge," he said.

* * *

"It's 'cause you isolate yourself, Max," Rogue said more seriously. The laughter in her voice was gone and all eyes were on her. Her eyes were on Max. "You've trapped yourself into this small world where everyone stands at attention whenever you enter a room. You're mission, your _cause_: it's your life's work. But that's the problem, Max, you're at work _twenty-four seven_."

"There are things you can only talk about, certain topics that ya can only bring up when you're with friends. But you've spend the last thirty years surrounding yourself with _employees_.No one would try to play an April fool's joke on you, not without being afraid of losing their jobs," she said. "I tried telling you a couple of weeks ago but you didn't see how you could be isolated and it got dropped," she said rolling her eyes.

"So, you had to show me," Magneto said.

"Yup," she smirked. "The look on your face when you realized what was going on was _priceless_," she said with a laugh. Magneto's eyes widen.

"You were there?" Max asked in disbelief.

"Maybe," Rogue smirked. Max just glared at her for a moment.

"What color hair did the manager have?" he asked.

"Brown," she answered easily: waiting for him to realize his mistake.

"So, you were-" he started to say before she used his power to shift his car slightly: causing the car's alarm to go off. She sensed Magneto going to turn off the alarm with his abilities. Rogue used his powers to join in his efforts: they turned off the alarm together. "Damn it, Anna," he exclaimed. She just smirked.

"I'm afraid you've lost me," Mr. McCoy said.

"Rogue, absorbed me a few moments ago. Either she was present and watched my humiliation from afar or while we were talking she could have easily looked over my memory," Max explained.

"Or both," Mr. McCoy added.

"Or both," Max repeated mostly to himself. "Either way it makes little difference whether or not she was present. She knows everything regarding the event," Max explained slightly annoyed.

"_Unsettling,_ ain't it?' Rogue asked pointedly. She watched Magneto's eyes widen once again before he met her gaze.

"Very much so," he remarked softy. He let out a sigh before he met Rogue's gaze. "Whatever happened to _not_ bring up bullshit from the past?" he asked with a raised eyebrow. She couldn't help but laugh at his question.

"We have history, Max. It ain't going anywhere," she said with a smile. "If you bring up something I did in the past, if that reference makes me mad I'm gonna be pissed. And I'm gonna call you out on your bullshit and I might refuse to talk to you for a while. That's just something you're gonna have ta deal with."

"_But_," she said strongly, "that rule works _both ways_. In this relationship we are _equals_. If I bring up something from the past and it pisses you off then you have the exact same right to be pissed at me," she said as a smile came to his face.

"Can we take this discussion to the car? I would still like to make our reservation," he said.

"Sure," she smiled.

"Nine o'clock curfew tonight, Rogue. Please don't forget. It's a school night," the Professor said. She turned to see that he was making his way towards the elevator.

"I won't, Prof," she answered. She heard him let out a sigh as he made his way into the elevator.

"We best be off," Max said. "Have a good evening, Mr. McCoy," Magneto said.

"You as well," Mr. McCoy said.

"Later, Mr. McCoy," Rogue said as Mr. McCoy smiled at her. The two of them started to walk.

"You were saying?" Max asked as they walked up to him car.

"Just that you have the same right to decide that maybe you don't wanna spend the evening with me," she said.

"But, I do want to spend the evening with you," he pointed out as they got into the car.

"So do I. I wanna spend a whole bunch more of them with you," she said as they turned to look at each other. "I decided Max, I _want_ this relationship to work," she told him. He gently took hold of her face and kissed her. She smiled against his lips. They pulled back slightly: his hand moving to her clothed shoulder.

"I guess, the real point I'm trying to make- okay well one of them, is that I ain't going anywhere," she said with a smile. "So, you don't have to be afraid of losing me. I promise you, that if I decide that I don't wanna be with you anymore that it won't come as a surprise. It won't be abrupt or for some stupid reason. I don't know if-"

"My love," he interrupted gently, "there's no need for that sort of talk. If the times comes that either of us feel the need to bring this an end we will handle that situation the same way we handle all our others," he said.

"Play mind games with each other until we wind up having sex?"she asked with a smirk. He laughed loudly at that.

"_Precisely_," he agreed with a chuckle. She leaned up and kissed him again. He pulled back from the kiss with a happy sigh. "…I am so glad we found each other," he said earnestly as he sat back against his seat.

"Me to," she agreed honestly. She held his gaze for a moment: enjoying the loving look he was fixing her with. She used his powers to start the car. His eyes widened in surprise for a brief second before returning to normal. "Someone had to, cause if you keep looking at me like that, I don't think we're gonna make the reservation," she said with a smirk. He leered at the comment. "And I'm _really_ hungry," she added.

"Alright," he said as he took hold of the wheel. "So, while we're on the subject: are there any other ideological points you would like to get out of your system?" Max asked as he pulled away from the institute.

"Well, you know what'll help with that whole isolation thing you got going on?" she asked.

"I'm open to suggestions," he said.

"Watching a movie or two," she said.

"No, it can't be," he exclaimed sarcastically as she let out a laugh. "The action you have been trying to convince me to take for weeks now? _That's_ the solution?" he asked.

"I know, uncanny, right?" Rogue asked with a smirk.

* * *

Magneto's laughter died down after a moment.

"Maybe," Max said suddenly in answer to the question he knew was on the tip of her tongue. "It'll depend upon what you'll ask me to watch, I suppose… I don't know, just maybe," he answered.

"It's better than a no," she said. He smiled at that.

* * *

Magneto and Rogue walked into restaurant. His arm rested comfortable around her shoulder as they walked up to the restaurant's hostess.

"Two for dinner?" the hostess to the restaurant asked.

"Yes, I have a reservation under Max Eisenhardt," he told her.

"I moment please," the hostess replied as she glanced at the book in front of her. "Yes," she said as she grabbed two menus. "Please follow me," she said looking up at the two of them. They followed her to the small candle lite table, near the back corner of the restaurant. Next to their dining table was a small table parallel to theirs. It had nothing on it besides a table cloth, as he had instructed.

Max watched the pleasant smile on Rogue's face as they sat down. The hostess handed them both their menus.

"It's turns out that we will not be needing the extra table," Magneto said as the hostess handed them both their menus.

"I'll let the busboy know," the hostess replied.

"Thank you," Max said.

"The waiter will be with you shortly," she said.

"Thank you," Rogue said.

"Thank you," Magneto echoed. The hostess smiled as she walked away. Once the hostess was gone Rogue let out a soft laugh. "What?" he asked curiously as he opened his menu.

"Where do I start?" she asked with a smile as she opened her menu. "We were gonna play _here_?" she asked with a laugh.

"Why not?" he asked. "I _can_ still make a chess set," he offered.

"I think I'm good on games for the day," she laughed.

"Very well," he said as glanced at his options. "What else?" he asked.

"We're sitting as far away from everyone else as we possibly can," she laughed. "We're _isolated_," she exclaimed with a smile. His eyes narrowed for a brief moment.

"_My apologizes_, Anna," he said mockingly. "_I_ was under the impression we were going to be playing a broad game here tonight. I _thought_ a bit of privacy was called for," he said.

"It would've been," she agreed softy. "Max, I wanna say one thing to you about your kids," she started to say.

"Pardon?" he asked completely taken off guard by the comment as he met her gaze. "I know you usually ask me to shy away from that topic," she started to say: her tone more serious, suggesting she would back down from the comment if he disapproved.

"Yes?" he asked: willing to hear whatever she had to say.

"On Thursday, when ya see them, you should tell them your real name," she said. "It was fine them not knowing a month ago since you weren't using it. But now that's some people know it, me and most of the x-men, you should tell them. I just know that if were me and if I didn't know either of my parents' real names. And my parents' _enemies_ knew it before I did, I'd be pissed," she explained.

"Would you?" he muttered absentmindedly as he thought about her words.

"Definitely," she answered.

"I suppose I should tell them," he said: the thought hadn't even crossed his mind until she brought it up. "While we're on the subject of families," he started to say.

"Yeah?" she asked.

"You should call your father," he commented. He watched her cast her gaze at the table.

"He say something about me?" she asked a moment later.

"Not in so many words, but I can tell he wondering why you two haven't gotten dinner as of yet," he said.

"I've been meaning to- it's just-" she started to say: her voice faltering.

"I know," he said. "But he _doesn't_. What you tell him is completely up to you, my girl: in regards to us, in regards to _everything_. You could just talk about school, how much of a bitch Raven is," he suggested as Rogue let out a laugh.

"You're right," she said."I'll call him first thing tomorrow," she said determined.

"Why not today?" he asked. She gave him a look.

"_It's April Fool's day,"_ she exclaimed.

"Which mean you can't speak with your father?" he asked confused.

"Which means, I can't set up a dinner that's six years overdue. What is something comes up? He wouldn't believe me the next time I asked him to spend time with me. I wanna rebuild our relationship. Not destroy it by accident," she said. "I thought you were starting to get this," she said.

"So, did I," he sighed. "I clearly have much to learn," he said as the waiter walked up to them.

"Are you two ready to order or do you need a few more minutes to decide?" the waited asked. They looked at one another.

"Max, do you know what you want?" she asked. He nodded.

"Do you?" Max asked.

"Yeah, I decided," she answered.

"I'll have a shrimp cocktail," Max said as he glanced up at the waiter.

"I'll take the steak dinner, middle well," Rogue said as the waiter took their menus and walked away.

"_Are_ there any other holidays I should be aware of?" he asked.

"You know what Saint Patrick's day is right?" she asked.

"I mark the date in my calendar every year to be certain I'll not in New York City that day. The damn parade they throw makes it impossible to do business anywhere in the city. For the life of me, what I don't understand- Maybe you can answer me this, Anna- although I'm not certain if you'll know. I doubt you've ever been to that parade yourself," he said as he pulled into the parking lot of the restaurant.

"I've got memories of people going," she shrugged.

"Who's?" he asked curiously.

"Victor's," she commented with a sigh. "Let's just leave it at that, alright. The nightmares I used to have, not all of them were of people dying. Didn't mean they weren't fucked up as all hell," she said: he watched her shutter.

"Are you alright?" he asked concerned as he put his hand on hers.

"Just, consider yourself lucky that you had never had to watch your _parents_ try to seduce drunk women," she said as closed her eye. He could hear her breathing deeply. She opened her eyes a moment later. "I'm alright," she said.

"Anna, there's-" he started to say as the waiter walked up to the table with their drinks, as well as glasses two of water. Rogue took hold of the glass of water the moment the waiter placed it on the table. He hated seeing her suffer like this: a victim of her own powers. "There is no reason on this earth why you should be cursed with memories of that sort," he said after the waiter had left the table.

"Maybe I'll ask Prof to help me get rid of them," she said.

"You most certainly should," he insisted gently as he squeezed her hand.

"You were gonna ask something." she said: clearly wishing to change the subject.

"Yes, I was. Why is it that _everyone _feels the need to beintoxicated?" he asked annoyed. She let out a laugh at his question.

"Cause its Saint Patrick's day," she said.

"That's it?" he asked in disbelief. "The date itself allows for open displays of inebriation?" he asked.

"Yup," she replied.

"You see, this is why I've never concerned myself with understanding the masses," he said as she rolled her eyes.

"You know some of the people in the masses are _mutants_," she pointed out.

"I never claimed there wasn't. But our kind have the ability to easily rise above that," he said.

"Not if the world is only filled with mutants. In any society there's always gotta be a lower class right?" she asked. He raised an eyebrow at her questions.

"An interesting thought, my girl, but we're _decades_ away from out numbering humans. That question won't be relevant for _at least_ a century," he said. "What made you think of that?" he asked curiously.

"An old fairy tale Irene used ta tell me. The story of SaBa Nor, and his four horseman of appacolapse. Saba Nor was this mutant who had contact with some weird alien technology and with it he wanted to turn all humans into Mutants, enslave all the mutants he just created and rule over the earth for all time," she said. "But this counsel was able to trap him before he got around to doing it. So, the story had a happy ending, I guess," she finished softly.

"An interesting choice for a bed time story," Magneto commented darkly as Rogue's eyes grew distant. "Anna," he called gently as he squeezed her hand. Her eyes refocused on him. "Are you alright?" he asked. She took a deep breath as her eyes were casted on the table.

"I wish I could just _stop_ thinking about her," she said. "I just- I have too many god damn memories of her. I can barely go _a_ _day_ without something getting brought up that makes me think about her," she said frustrated.

"The more memories you build without her in your life the easier it will become to keep her from your thoughts," Magneto said. "It was years, for me, before I stopped seeing remembrances of camps at every corner. The same will happen for you, Anna. It will just take time," he said.

"I hope you're right," she sighed.

"I am," he said strongly as he squeezed her hand again. She smiled at that.

* * *

Thank you everyone for the suggestions on who Magneto should call. Quicksilver worked out the best once I started writing. Thank you Genobeast! :)

Thank you for reading! Please review!

Do you guys want to see Magneto's dinner with his kids? Let me know!


	58. Chapter 57

Sorry for the super slow updating! I've been working crazy 50 hour weeks and I've been spending my weekends studying for my exam! Speakign of which: I finally passed my licensing exam! Hm...one of three. Updating going to be slow for a while.

But as always, thank you for reading and please review!

Please Enjoy!

* * *

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Fifty-Seven

Rogue sat on her bed and glared at the bundle of letters from her father. It was Tuesday morning and she still hadn't opened any of them and wasn't sure if she was ever going to. Sighing, she dialed Victor's cell phone number.

"Hi," she said once the dull ringing abruptly stopped.

"Hey," she heard him grumble.

"Did I wake you up?" she asked.

"Yeah, but it's fine. My alarm was gonna go off in five minutes anyway," Victor replied. "What's up, kiddo?" he asked with a yawn.

"You still wanna get dinner?" she asked.

"Hell yeah," he mumbled, half awake.

A smile tugged at Rogue's lips. "How about Thursday night?" she asked.

"Thursday works. As long as nothing comes up with work," he said. Other than Mystique there were no high maintenance prisoners to look after and Magneto didn't have any major business dealings or mutant affair issues to tend to this week.

"I don't think anything's gonna come up. This week's supposed ta be quiet," she remarked.

"Oh yeah?" he muttered sounding a little more alert. "I heard this rumor that you're Magneto's _second in command_," he spoke slowly and probingly. "I thought you said you were with the X-Men."

"I am," she answered quickly, "but I'm _also_ Eric's second in command. It's a long story," she started to say as she glanced at the clock. "I gotta go to school. I'll tell ya all about it on Thursday, okay? Ya wanna go to the same place we were gonna meet last time?" she asked as she looked around for her shoes.

"Yeah, sounds good. Have a good day at school," he said, voice returning to its causal tone.

"Thanks," she smiled as she found her shoes by the edge of the bed and placed them in front of her. "I hope you have a good day too."

"I'll try, fucking guard duty," he grumbled.

"Raven's in a cell. She ain't going anywhere," Rogue said rolling her eyes as she started to put on her shoes.

"You know how crafty your mother can be," Victor noted.

"She's in a medically induced coma. I don't think we have anything to be worried about," Rogue dismissed dryly as she finished tying her shoelaces. She took a deep breath: keeping Mystique as his prisoner had been one of the compromise between her and Magneto. He had refused to allow Mystique her freedom.

"**She's too dangerous, Anna," Magneto had said. "She sees me an enemy and I doubt she will change her mind anytime soon. Unless you're suggesting I change it for her?' he asked with a raised eyebrow. **

Rogue had let the subject drop quickly after that. She had had to choose her battles with care while re-planning the emergence. A coma was less severe than telepathic enslavement. At least that's what she had told herself. In truth, she had been trying not to think about it.

'_Maybe, I should bring it up,'_ she thought to herself as Victor commented, "I'm with you, kiddo, but orders are orders."

"You know what," she began as she stood up, "as Magneto's second in command, I'm ordering you to get at least another hour's sleep. One of us should get to," she said as she grabbed her bag off of her bed.

"You can do that?" he asked.

"My orders supersede all others, _except_ Magneto's. Unless Eric calls and tells you to get your ass up, you're in the clear," she said.

"You're a good daughter," he mumbled as blankets ruffled in the background. She smiled at his comment.

"Rogue, we gotta go," Kitty interrupted as she phased into the room. "We're going to be late for school!"

"See ya Thursday, Victor," Rogue said as Kitty dragged her out the door.

* * *

Rogue sat on the floor with Storm in one of the gyms beneath the institute. They had been mediating together for the past twenty minutes. Rogue opened her eyes as she took a deep breath.

"How do you feel?" Ororo asked.

"Calm," Rogue answered with a serene smile.

"That's good," Ororo said as she stood up. "Would you like a bottle of water?" she offered.

"Yeah, please."

"So, how is everything else this week?" Ororo asked as she walked over to the mini-fridge.

"Okay," Rogue replied. "Surprisingly okay actually," she laughed as Ororo turned back to face her. There was a confused frown on the woman's face. "I called my dad this morning," she smiled. "We're gonna get dinner Thursday night," she said, taking the cold water bottle from her instructor's hand.

"That's nice to hear," Ororo said with a tense smile and sat down. Although Rogue saw it, she dismissed the woman's lack of sincerity and accepted her honest attempt at being supportive. She opened her bottle and took a large swig when a high-pitched ringing on other end of the room demanded her attention.

"Huh?" Rogue muttered surprised as she stood up and walked over to her bag, and pulled out her phone. It was Quicksilver. "Hey, what's up?" she asked.

"We have a problem," Pietro answered. "I tried calling Dad-" he started to say.

"He's in back-to-back business meeting all afternoon. You ain't gonna be able to get in touch with him. What's going on?" she asked.

"Mystique escaped," he told her.

"What?" she asked softly. She didn't whether to be relieved that her mother was no longer Magneto's prisoner, or very very worried about the woman might try to do with her new found freedom. She took a deep breath. Someone had to have helped Raven escape. She was a sneaky woman, but not even Mystique was capable of escaping while incapacitated.

'_Mr. McCoy,'_ she called out to the fragment.

'_Yes?'_ he asked.

'_How long does it take someone to wake up from a medically induced coma?' she_ asked.

'_Usually within six hours of the medication being stopped,'_ he answered.

"Pietro, when did this happen?" she asked.

"Sometime this morning, we're not sure exactly when. Everyone's still waking up. Gambit called me when he couldn't reach my father," he said.

"Is everyone okay?" she asked.

"Yeah, no one's hurt," he said.

"Okay," she muttered. She had a lot more questions, but Ororo was standing right behind her. "Alright, meet me by the elevator of the institute as fast as ya can. We'll handle this together," she said. She took another deep breath as she hung up the phone. "I gotta go," she said as she made eye contact with Ororo.

"Is everything alright?" she inquired.

"Is it ever?" she asked annoyed as she grabbed her bag. "I gotta go handle something," she said as she headed towards the door, Ororo close behind.

"As Magneto's second in command?" It sounded like more of an accusation than a question.

"Yeah," she sighed.

"I thought you weren't planning to use the power he gave you," Ororo remarked as they walked down the hall.

"Honestly, I wasn't. But this is an emergency and Magneto's unreachable. Someone's gotta take control over the situation," she said shrugged as they walked up to the elevator. She pressed the button calling for the lift. "I might not be home for dinner. I'll call when I know for sure," she said as the elevator doors opened.

"And, let me guess, you cannot tell us where you are going or what you're doing," Ororo's voice held a hint of frustration.

"Not really, no," she said shrugged as she pressed the button for the ground floor.

"And you aren't going to tell Professor Xavier either, are you?" Ororo said.

Rogue sighed. "He's just gonna go off on how it's a bad idea and how Magneto shouldn't have even asked me to take the position, never mind taking charge of situation that involves ordering Magneto's people around. And I just don't wanna hear it," she exclaimed. The look of concern and disapproval had not left Ororo's face. "It's an emergency about my mother, okay?" she admitted reluctantly.

"…Which one?" Ororo asked carefully.

"… Raven," Rogue answered.

"Is Mystique alright?" she asked.

"I don't know. She's gone missing," Rogue said. "But I'm gonna be with my dad while we look for her. He ain't gonna let anything happen ta me. I'll be safe," she added. She wished she had started with that. The elevator door opened. Pietro was standing right outside of it. "Thanks for the session, Ororo. I'll see ya later tonight," she said before she turned to Quicksilver. She put her fingertips to his face: taking seven minutes worth of energy from him. "Follow me," she ordered. Quicksilver promptly nodded before they took off towards Magneto's base.

* * *

Ororo watched them race off, partly angered by Rogue's casual dismissal but mostly worried about what the young girl was getting herself into. Most of all though, she felt completely powerless to do anything about the situation.

* * *

Rogue and Pietro ran into the large warehouse that served as one of Magneto's bases. Victor was standing in front of a large metal dome, housed within the warehouse.

"Hey," Rogue said as they came to a stop. "You alright?" she asked.

"I'm fine. Sleep through the whole fucking thing," Victor said annoyed.

"We all did," Gambit said as he came out of the metal dome's entrance. "Whoever did this knocked us all out," he added.

"Did you get a look at the person?" Rogue asked.

"No," Gambit said.

"Were the security cameras running today?" Rogue asked.

"We haven't checked yet," Victor said.

"Alright, I'll take care of that," she said as she started to walk towards the dome's entrance. Pietro and Victor were right behind her. "Pietro, call Magneto. Leave a voicemail report about what's going on if he doesn't pick up," she ordered.

"On it," Pietro said before he ran across the room.

"Gambit, Victor go take a look around the base. I wanan know if there's anything missing besides Mystique," she said.

"I take orders from _Magneto_, Cherie" Gambit said.

"You take orders from anyone who _outranks_ you," Victor said. "That includes me _and _Magneto's second in command," he said as he pointed to Rogue.

"Wait, _you're_ the commodore?" he asked in disbelief.

"Yes, _I'm_ Anna Marie Creed," Rogue said slightly annoyed. Gambit just stared at her for a moment.

"Now move your ass and help me look," Victor ordered before he started to walk away. Gambit stared at her for moment before he followed Victor. Rogue let out a sigh as she headed into the base and walked up to the video security system, on the far right wall.

The system included two large television screens that could be switched between the eight cameras within the base with a press of the button. The tapes were recorded on video tapes that needed to be switched out every eight hours. If they were on schedule the last switch should have happened at 8:00am this morning before shifts were changed: the duty of switching the tapes falling to the individual who's shift was ending. Those tapes were stored in the large cabinet to the left of the televisions.

She examined the VCR's: checking to make sure they all still had tapes in them. She stopped at the third VCR as she felt her heart skip a beat. On the tape it was clearly written across the edge of it: "For the commodore's eyes only," in Irene's handwriting.

"What the fuck?" Rogue muttered to herself as she recoiled several feet. "She was here," she whispered as she fell back into a computer chair: the chair rolled back a few feet. "She was actually_ in_ Bayville," she said as her breath quickened. Her hands gripped the arms of the chair, as she firmly placed her feet on the floor. She needed something to hold onto: something to keep herself steady. She took deep breaths attempting to shake off the feeling of fear that threatened to consume her.

'_Or she had Agatha bring the tape here for her?'_ she asked herself. She had to watch that tape. She just had to will herself to stand again. _'It's just a tape,'_ she told herself as she breathed. '_You haven't even watched it yet. You can freak out later, not here, not now. You're supposed to be in charge,' _she thought strongly.

She let out a breath as she opened her eyes. She stood up and walked over to the televisions. Before she could talk herself out of it, Rogue turned on the screen and pressed play on the tape.

It was a video of Mystique's cell. Mystique was laying on a bed, strapped down, with an IV in her arm. Rogue knew the IV was injecting her with a very powerful sedative, which had been keeping Raven unconscious since she had supposedly been abandoned at Area 51.

Rogue saw the door to Raven's cell open seemingly by itself. She took a deep breath as she watched Irene walk into the room. Irene turned her face towards the camera as she took a seat in the chair next to Raven's bed. This was the first time she was seeing her foster mother since she had left her house in Mississippi. The first time since she had learned what price her birth mother had paid so Irene could raise her.

Rogue took a deep breath as she claimed herself. Closing her eyes she took deep breaths, the way Ororo had taught her.

After a minute or so had passed, Rogue opened her eyes, feeling as claim as she could given the situation. She stared at the screen in disbelief. Irene was still just sitting there, facing the camera, not doing or saying anything.

"Screw this," Rogue muttered before she moved her hand to fast-forward the tape. Her breath caught in her throat as she saw Irene's head turn towards her hand. Rogue froze. 'What?' she asked herself in disbelief.

Slowly she started to move her hand up and down; sure enough Irene's face followed her movements.

Rogue took another deep breath as she let her hand fall to her side.

"I get it," she said: a hint of defeat in her voice. "I suspected as much. Living with you all those years, the way you always just _knew_. The way you've been playing with me, _my whole life._ I get it," she said bitterly. "You're watching me and there ain't a damn thing I can do about it. So move the fuck on to your next point. Before I get inpatient and press stop, like we both know I can," she said.

"Magneto love's his surveillance equipment, doesn't he?" Irene asked softly with a laugh. "He likes to feel as though he's _omnipresent_," she laughed as she shook her head with a smile. Rogue's hands balled at her sides. "He couldn't even begin to understand the concept," she said.

"Not like you do," Rogue said bitterly.

"Yes, Rogue. Not like I do," Irene agreed as she turned her head back to facing Raven. "I know there are things you would like to ask me, Rogue. So, go ahead. Ask," Irene said.

'_She wants me to ask questions. _Fine,_'_ she thought bitterly. _'I'll ask her some fucking questions,'_ she thought. "Why are you doing this to me, Irene? What the fuck did I ever do t-" she started to ask annoyed as a smile graced Irene's face.

"Nothing, honey," Irene said. Rogue's eyes narrowed at the answer and the endearment. "You've done nothing to me. It's remarkable really. Though out all the timelines I've explored, even in the ones where Raven and I _didn't_ adopt you, you have never done me harm," Irene said.

"Then why?" she demanded to know.

"For that very reason. You know now that I have spent _years_ mapping out our future. I've had to plan so thoroughly to ensure that everything unfolds exactly the way it has. Even the smallest choice can change the lives of millions," Irene said.

"I'm sure having Agatha has helped you with _that_," Rogue said bitterly.

"That's still _Miss, Harkness_ to you, child," Agatha Harkness said as she walked into the view of the camera. Agatha stared at Rogue a moment before turning to Irene. "Irene, have you finished?" she asked dryly.

"I'll just be another minute. Would you please take Raven to the car while we talk?" she asked.

"Very well," Agatha said the straps holding down Raven's body were removed, seemingly by themselves. Rogue could hear Agatha muttering under her breath as she watched Raven's body lift into the air.

"Thank you," Irene said as Agatha and Mystique headed towards the door. Rogue noticed that Agatha had kept the IV inserted into Raven's arm. The bag and the pole the sedative was coming out of, rolling with Raven and Agatha, exiting the room.

"You're keeping her in the coma?" Rogue asked.

"For now," Irene said.

"Why?" she asked.

"The same reason you and Magneto did," Irene said.

'_Cause she's easier to control that way,_' Rogue to herself sadly. Her eyes narrowed as she replayed Irene's last statement in her mind. "I didn't keep Raven in anything," she said offended. "That was Magne-," she said.

"You allowed it," Irene said..

"I didn't _allow_ anything. I was being blackmailed by-" she started to say as it hit her. "I'm arguing with a tape. I am standing here _arguing_ with a _fucking tape_," she thought annoyed. "Scre-," Rogue exclaimed as she reached forward to stop on the VCR.

"Do not turn off the tape, _or else_," Irene commanded in the stein voice she had endured as a child.

"Or else, _what_? You gonna send _Juggernaut_ to the institute again? It didn't kill me th-"

"My dear child, it wasn't_ meant_ to," Irene interrupted. "You saw that when you looked through his memories. I'm _preparing_ you," she said.

"For what?" she exclaimed.

"Your future," Irene answered.

"No shit, Irene. What do you wanna happen in this future? What is _so_ bad that you have to _torture_ me in fucking preparation?" she asked.

"I haven't tortured you-," Irene said.

"You se-" Rogue started to argue.

"Not yet," Irene added. Rogue felt her heart skip a beat at Irene's last statement. Rogue took a deep breath as she pushed back her fear.

'_She's just trying to frighten you, my girl,'_ the fragment of Magneto said.

'_It's working,'_ Rogue thought bitterly as she took a deep breath.

'_She doesn't need to know that. She doesn't need to see how much she affects you,'_ he told her.

'_It's a little late for that, Max,'_ Rogue said.

'_That's assuming she's been watching you every moment. Surely, she must have memorized this conversation. All the pauses. The way she stated every word in order to educe a carefully planned emotion out of you. It must have taken her _hours_, days maybe. All of our powers have limitations, Anna. _All_ of us," _he stressed._ "Hers can't be any different. Somewhere in her taunts is a bluff, I know it. We just have to find and exploit it,' _he said. Rogue took another deep breath.

"_You_ sent Juggernaut," Rogue muttered said: deciding to continue what she was going to say before. "You _knew_ what would happen," Rogue said.

"...Yes, I did. I knew that seeing you, as wounded as you were, would _change_ him. It made him see the price of keeping you in bondage, my child. And it convinced him to _release_ you," Irene stressed. "Do you want to know where you would be now if I hadn't sent Juggernaut?"

"I would've talked him into letting me go home," Rogue said.

"_Eventually_, yes you would have. But nothing else would have changed. Still you would be his captive. Still you would be a victim of his blackmail," she said. "This time, Rogue, I did you a favor," Irene said.

"Fuck your favors. I just want you to leave me alone," Rogue said.

"I can't do that, honey," Irene said. "There's too much at stake," she said.

"What's at stake? What do you want fro-?" she asked as she Irene stood up.

"You'll see," she said pleasantly as she walked towards the exit. "You're a smart girl, Rogue, You always have been. It's one of the reasons I choose you. I won't _need_ to tell you. One day you'll just know," she said as she walked up to the exit. She stopped at the cell door. "You've found it in your heart to forgive him, despite all he's done. Maybe one day you will be able to forgive me," Irene said. Rogue stared at the screen in disbelief.

"Not fucking likely," Rogue said.

"We'll see," Irene said before she exited the cell: walking out of the camera line of sight.

* * *

Thank you for reading! Please let me know what you think!


	59. Chapter 58

Thank you Puffzpenguin, Sissiewest, Marigab, Anglepaint07, and Techi13 for the lovely reviews! In each chapter, I usaully have four or five things I'm trying to convey. Thank you for taking the time to give me some feedback, letting me know if I've hit the marks I was attempting to make! :)

* * *

Please enjoy

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Fifty-Eight

Rogue reached forward and turned off the tape. She balled her hands once the tape was off.

"Hey, Rogue?" she heard Pietro ask from behind her. Rogue turned her head slightly towards him when she heard his voice.

'_Keep it together, girl,'_ she told herself. "Did ya get a hold of your father?" she asked without turning around.

"No, got his voicemail. I left a message like you said," he answered.

"Good," she mumbled. "Go ask Victor if he needs any help," she ordered.

"On it," Pietro said before he raced out of the room.

Rogue took a deep breath as she pulled her phone out of her pocket.

_'There ain't any around it now. I gotta tell him,'_ she thought with a sigh before she dialed Max's number.

* * *

Magneto sat in the large board room at the back head of the table. There was a presentation on the projector screen displaying why he should continue to leave his company in the hands of the other twenty-four members of this very board of directors. Magneto glanced at his phone, once again he was receiving a call.

He raised an eyebrow: first Gambit, then Pietro, now Anna? Usually, he wasn't bothered with phone calls.

"Mr. Nelson," Magneto called out. The man giving the presentation along with all of the board members turned to look at him. "A moment if you please," he said as he stood up. "I need to take this phone call," he remarked as he walked towards the door. He answered the phone, "Miss, Creed?" as asked as he exited the room.

"Raven's gone, Irene took her," Rogue told him as he closed the door behind him. Well, that was, by far, the last thing he could have expected her to say.

"Are you alright, Anna?" he asked.

"I'm just peachy," she said dryly. "Look, I took control of the situation cause no one could reach you. But they really ain't much else I can do here. Agatha wouldn't have left a trail that could be traced, so it might not be worth calling in a team to investigate, but that's up to you, Max," she said.

"Agatha who?" he asked with a raised eyebrow.

"_Harkness_," Rogue said. "She's working with Irene," she said.

"What?" he exclaimed. He had known the woman for over a decade. He had trusted her with the instruction of his daughter's powers. "Are you certain?" he asked.

"Course, I am," she said: sounding annoyed with the question. "I saw her take Raven out of her cell myself," she said.

"You saw?" he started to question. "The security cameras," he realized within a moment of asking.

"There's something else," Rogue said.

"Yes?" he asked quickly as the door to the conference room opened.

"Mr. Lehnsherr?" Mr. Nelson asked as the door opened.

"I'll just be another moment," Magneto told him.

"I know you're in the middle of a meeting. It _can_ wait till Saturday, if you want," she said.

"There's something I need to tell you, something we agreed to wait till Saturday to discuss. But in light of current events, I'm afraid it can't wait till the weekend," he said.

"What the hell does _Mystique_ being kidnapped by _Irene _have to do _Risty_?" Rogue asked.

'_I said too much,'_ he realized. "I'll explain later, please just give me a moment, Anna. Mr. Nelson," he said turning to face the business man.

"Yes, Mr. Lehnsherr?" he asked.

"Are profits down?" he asked.

"No, we're doing well this quarter," he answered. "Everything's up," he said.

"Then keep up the good work," Magneto said.

"Yes, Mr. Lehnsherr," Mr. Nelson nodded: a befuddled look on his face.

"Give my excuses to the rest of the board," Magneto said before he turned again and headed towards the elevator. "Anna, I'm on my wa-," he started to say into the phone.

"No," he heard Rogue whimper as Magneto's eyes widened in fear.

'_Damn it,'_ he thought. "Anna?" he asked as he quickened his pace. "Please _try_ to hold yourself together until I get there," he said into the phone as he fanatically pressed the button for the elevator. "Anna, can you hear me?" he asked as the elevator doors opened. Thankfully, no one else was in the lift. "Anna?" he asked as he got in the elevator. He used his powers to press the button for the ground floor.

He desperately needed to get out of here. He hadn't intended for her to find out like this. He wanted to be by her side, to help her though the pain and anger she was no doubt feeling.

"Anna," he asked again, but he couldn't hear anything. He looked at his phone and saw that he had no bars of service. "Damn it," he yelled in frustration.

He used his powers to quicken the elevator's descend: all the while his eyes were focused on the screen of his phone.

Thirty agonizing second later he finally had a bar. He quickly dialed her number again as the lift's doors opened. To his relief she picked up.

"Anna?" he asked: his tone concerned as he stopped walking. If he went outside he would barely be able to hear her.

"I'm- … I'm here," she said softy. It was evident from her voice that she was crying. It would be pointless to ask her if she was alright. The answer was a definitive no. What should he say? What was there to say in a situation like this?

"I am so sorry these things keep happening to you," he said earnestly.

"Me too, Max," she muttered.

"You can wait in my office, if you would like to. You'll have some privately. I will be there as soon as I can," he said.

"…Max, I- I… I think I'm just gonna go back to the institute. If I'm gone much longer than I'm gonna have ta deal with Prof. And I- I don't wanna have to deal with anything else today. I'm at my limit," she said.

"Of course, do what you need to, my love," he said.

"Have the others fill you in when you get here. I'm gonna leave the tape, I-" she started to say before gasping. "I- Irene left, in your office. The other thing I need to tell you, it's-"

"Anna, you already said it could wait till Saturday. We'll deal with it then," he said.

"… Okay," she muttered.

"If you decide you want to talk, or you want my company, _please_ do not hesitate to call. I will be by your side within moments of the request," he said. He heard her let out a laugh through her tears.

"Fuck, I-… I would- …," she paused before letting out a sigh. "I'll just see ya Saturday, Max," she said.

"Whatever you need, my girl," he said again.

"Thanks," she said before she hung up the phone.

"Damn it," he said in frustration.

* * *

Rogue took deep breaths as sat in the computer chair near the televisions. She wasn't quite ready to stand just yet: although, she kept telling herself to.

'_Why does she-'_ she started to ask herself before she stopped herself. She couldn't get into these thoughts, not here. She needed to compose herself just enough to talk to Pietro, get his powers and go home. She could break down there, she could dwell on her mothers there.

"Rogue?" Pietro asked again. Rogue kept herself from letting out a groan: she wasn't ready to talk to anyone just yet. "Sabertooth said they had it covered. Told me to report back to you," he said. Quickly, she wiped her eyes clean.

"You okay?" he asked.

"Come here," she ordered. He was in front of her within a second. She let out a sigh, she might as well tell him. "You ever met, Risty Wilde?" she asked.

"The hot British girl you always used to hang with?" he asked.

"Yeah, her," Rogue huffed in anger. "Turns out that was _Mystique_," she told him bitterly. He just stared at her a moment.

"…You have the _worst_ mom on the face of the planet," Pietro said. Tears crept up on her at his words.

"I know," Rogue exclaimed, referring to both of her mothers. She closed her eyes as she wiped the tears away as fast as she could. When she opened her eyes, Pietro had moved another computer chair next to hers and was sitting in it. She closed her eyes again as she took a deep breaths.

"Rogue?" he asked as she felt something brush against her hands. She opened her eyes to see Pietro holding out a box of tissues to her.

"Thanks," she muttered as she took one. She started to wipe her eyes and her face clean; taking tissues from Pietro when she needed to.

"You need anything else?" he asked after a few minutes.

"Water," she said. He was back in a moment with a bottle for her. "Thanks," she said as she took it from him. She opened it and took a few large sips. "Fuck," she muttered as she let her head rest against the chair. "I need to get a grip," she muttered.

"When did you find out?" Pietro asked.

"Only _fifteen_ minutes ago," Magneto said incredulously. Both Rogue and Pietro turned to see Magneto walking into the room, Victor behind him. "You should give yourself a little more time than that, my girl," he said as Rogue took another sip of the water.

"What'd you find out?" Victor asked curiously as they walked further into the room.

"My best friend for the last seven months was actually Mystique," Rogue said resentfully as Victor motioned for Pietro to get out of the seat. Pietro quickly moved out of his way.

"I fucking hate it when she does that shit," Victor exclaimed annoyed as he took a seat next to Rogue. Rogue glanced up at Victor. "This one time, before we got divorced," he started to say, "I was at in this bar. And this hot little thing started talking me up. I flirted a little," he admitted. "And then she _throws_ herself at me," he said. "I kissed her back for a second. For _one fucking second_, and then your mom shifts back and starts fucking _yelling_ at me. Like_ I'm _the one who did something wrong. Fucking manipulative _bitch_," he said.

"Why does she have to _be_ like that?" Rogue exclaimed.

"I don't know, kiddo," Victor muttered sadly. "She's been like that as long as I've known her," he said before blew her nose. "Seven months?" he asked. She nodded sadly. "Fucking bitch," he muttered. Rogue closed her eyes for a moment and took another deep breath. "You gonna be okay?" he asked.

* * *

Magneto watch Rogue nod as she opened her eyes and looked at Victor.

"I just need some time with a punching bag," Rogue told him.

"Have your knuckles healed from the last time?" Magneto asked.

"Mostly," she muttered. Her eyes flashed to his. "I'm still gonna do it," she told him.

"I'm hardly telling you not to. By all means, _picture_ their faces on the bag. Kick the crap out of _both_ of them," Magneto said as he watched a smile form on her face.

"I love it when you curse," Rogue said.

"I know," Magneto said: smirking slightly. "Just wrap your hands this time. There's no need for you to injure yourself while you vent," he said.

"Yes, sir," Rogue said nodding promptly while smirking.

"I'm serious," Magneto added.

"I know," she smiled. "And I will," she said reassuringly.

"Good," Magneto said before his eyes trailed down to her hands again. In one she was holding a issue, in the other- "Is that the tape?" he asked.

"Yup," Rogue sighed as she held out the tape to him. He took a step forward. "Irene left it," Rogue said before he saw a curious expression on Victor's face. "Yeah, _that _Irene," Rogue told Victor as Magneto took the tape form her.

"Fucking cunt," Victor muttered. "What does she want with Mystique?" he asked.

"She didn't say," Rogue answered. "Did you call a team yet?" Rogue asked.

"I've yet to reach Ma-" Magneto started to say.

"Don't say names," Rogue ordered quickly. All eyes were on Rogue. Neither Victor nor Pietro had ever seen anyone issue him an order. "Irene probably already knows who we'll have looking for her," she started to explain. "But I ain't about to assume that and tell her outright," Rogue said. Magneto raised an eyebrow. "Just trust me," Rogue said strongly. Magneto nodded before he walked up to the televisions.

"Would you mind if I watched this?" Magneto asked. Rogue shook her head.

"You're gonna need me to fill ya in my half of the conversation anyway," she said as he put the tape in the VRC.

"You're half?" Pietro asked.

"Just watch," Rogue ordered before sighing: she sounded tired. Magneto pressed play as he's eye went to the screen. The screen showed: Mystique's cell, however Mystique was noticeably absence. "Did you rew-" Rogue started to ask as Irene walked into the line of slight of the camera. He heard Rogue let out a small gasp from behind him.

"We're going to find her," Magneto said strongly, reassuringly, as he made eye contact. Rogue started to smile slightly but-

"No, Magneto," Irene started to say. His eyes widened as he turned back to the television screen. "No, you will not find me. Not before I get what I want from Rogue," Irene said before Magneto used his powers to press stop.

"What the fuck?" Victor asked as Magneto turned back to look at Rogue. Their eyes met and all he saw was terror behind her gaze. He watched her take a deep breath as her eyes went distant.

"Anna?" Max asked concerned.

"I'm fine, really," she said quickly; he watched her eye refocus. "Would you mind if I absorbed you?" she asked.

"Of course not," he said as he took a step forward to her.

"Why does she need Agatha, anyway?" Rogue asked him as she took off her glove.

"Cause the bitch ain't a telepath," Victor said irate. Rogue's eyes flashed to Magneto's at Victor's statement. He took Rogue's hand in his own.

'_We'll only discuss Irene in safe locations: Jericho, the café. Every one of my bases has a room that in lined with the necessary metal,'_ he commented, as his thoughts flowed into her mind. He started to unlink his hand from hers, but she kept her grip firm.

"We've checked on that?" Rogue asked as she looking up at him.

"Yeah, Irene ain't telepathic," Victor confirmed. Magneto glanced at her a moment before he realized what her question was really referring to. "I've known that cunt for decades," he said.

'_Of course, one of us will secure that the walls have not been tampered with _before_ we begin out discussions,'_ Magneto thought. Rogue realized his hand.

"That's a relief," Rogue said.

"Agreed," Magneto said out loud before a ringing sound came from Rogue's pocket.

"Crap," she said annoyed as she pulled the phone of her pocket.

"The institute?" Magneto asked.

"Who else?" she asked annoyed as she answered the phone. "Hey," she said as she stood up. "Hey, Ororo," she said as she walked a few feet away from all of them. "Is Prof pissed?" she asked. He saw a smile come to Rogue's face. "Ororo, I owe you _big time_," she said. "…Yeah, I'll be home for dinner. How long do I have?" she asked as she looked over at Pietro.

"Pen and a pad of paper, now," she ordered as she held a hand over the receiver of the phone. Pietro raced away quickly. "…Yeah, I'll be home in time. Thanks, Ororo," she said with a smile before she hung up.

"She didn't tell, Prof," she smile as Pietro returned to the room with the items Rogue had asked for. Rogue put the phone in her pocket with one hand she placed her bare finger tips on his son face. In the blink of an eye, the pad and paper were in her hands. Another few seconds past and she was standing in front of him. "That's my half of the conversation from the tape," she explained as she handed him the note pad. "We'll talk about the details on Saturday, café, ten am," she said quickly.

"Agreed," Magneto said. He watched her turn to Victor as he glanced at the papers in his hand: he began to read.

"We still on for Thursday?" she asked.

"Unless something comes up work," Victor told her.

"It shouldn't," Magneto said.

"Okay, I'll see you then," she said: a smile in her tone. "See ya all, later," she said before she raced out of the room. Magneto's eyes narrowed at one sentence he read.

"What is it?" Victor asked. Magneto pointed to one line on the paper. It read: "Are you going to send _Juggernaut_ to the institute again? It didn't kill me th-".

"I'm killing Irene. I'm fucking killing her," Victor exclaimed.

"I will not stop you," Magneto promised as the made eye contact. Victor held his gaze for a long moment.

"I'm gonna hold you to that, Magnus," Victor said.

"I'll expect you to. However, you have my apologizes in advance, if when the time comes _I_ kill her first," Max said darkly. "… Go find Gambit," he ordered changing the subject. "I want a report," he said. Victor nodded before leaving the room.

"…You would_ kill_ another _mutant_ for Rogue?" Pietro asked him. It was a question he knew his son had only asked because they were now alone.

"Yes," he answered honestly as he met his eyes. "I would also do the same for you, son, in a heartbeat," he told him. Pietro's eyes lite up. "And for your sisters, of course," he added. Pietro nodded quickly. "I refuse to lose another I love to mindless violence, murder, or accident," he said disgusted.

"Who did you lo-" Pietro started to ask, but stopped mid-sentence. "Sorry, I know you don't like talking about your past," he said.

"It's alright," Max said. "The reason I prefer not to discuss it- Well, for one thing the stories of my past are most certainly not suitable for children. But you're not exactly a child anymore, are you?" he asked with a smile. "It is very painful for me to discuss, though," he explained.

"We don't have to," Pietro said. He smiled at his son as he placed his hand on his shoulder.

"Pietro, I don't think I've said this to you in a while, but I am _very_ proud of you, son," Max said.

"I- Thank you," Pietro said. He held his son's gaze for a moment.

"There's no more for you to do here, tonight. Go home," he ordered gently as he released his shoulder. "We'll talk more Thursday," he said.

"Hawaii?" Pietro asked.

"Hawaii," Magneto confirmed.

* * *

Rogue sat at the kitchen table with her family, finishing up dinner. The usual amount of chatter, and laughter filled the room. Rogue took comfort in this chatter. For a while, it had been more than useful. It was easy to get away with not talking when everyone was having multiple conversations. No one took notice of her silence.

Rogue kept herself from sighing as she stood from the table. She grabbed her plate and cup and headed for the sink.

It was her turn to do the dishes, so, she stripped off her gloves and put on the yellow latex gloves that were hanging near the sink. There were a few things in the sink already. By the times he was done with those the others would have brought over everything else that needs washing.

Rogue turned on the water, put soap on the sponge, and began to wash the plate she had used.

As she was about to place the clean plate in the dish-drainer, the Professor said, "allow me." She jumped slightly at the sound of his voice: nearly dropping the plate.

* * *

Charles glanced up at Rogue confused.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to startle you," Charles said apologetically as he watched Rogue take a deep breath.

"It's alright. I'm just-" she managed to say as her body was shook slightly, he guessed in fear. The question was, fear of what? Kitty walked up to Rogue's other size with a stack of dishes.

"Rogue, are you okay?" Kitty asked as she placed the stack on the counter.

"I'll be fine," Rogue said as picked up the plate she had been washing. "Thanks, Kitty," she said as she turned to Kitty and slid the stack of plates closer to the sink. Kitty smiled slightly before she headed back to the table.

'_At least, she's not claiming to be alright at this moment,'_ Charles thought as Rogue turned and handed him the plate. He dried it with the small dish towel in his hands. "Do you want to talk about whatever is it that's bothering you?" he asked as she started to wash the next dish.

"Not even a little," Rogue said dryly. "But thanks," she said.

"If you change your mind-" Charles began to say.

"I'll let you know," she said quickly. _'…Prof?_' he heard her think to him after a moment.

"Yes?" he asked.

"I didn't say anything," she muttered: her tone slightly confused. _'And I'm not going to. Not out loud. Could we talk like this for a while?' _she asked as she held out the next dish to him.

"My mistake," he said aloud as he took the plate_. 'Yes, of course. What happened?'_ he asked concerned.

'_It's Irene, I… brace yourself, okay?' _

'_Go ahead,'_ he said.

* * *

'_Cerebro, is almost repaired,'_ Charles offered as he dried another plate. Rogue had told him about the tape Irene had left for her to find. Because the conversation between her and Irene had taken place in one of Magneto's bases, she had elected to repeat the dialog rather than spare herself some pain and allow him to watch.

'_She's got Agatha. I don't know if Cerebro is gonna be _able_ to fine her,' _Rogue thought.

'_Nevertheless, I will try,'_ he told her.

'_Thanks,'_ she said.

'_Do you know anything about her relationship to Agatha Harkness? Why this woman is so willing to help Irene?'_ he asked.

'_I have no idea,'_ Rogue said sadly. '_Agatha used to come over a lot when I was younger. I don't really remember much of that. I'll have to look,'_ she said.

'_Not today,' _he thought alarmed.

'_I wasn't planning to,_' Rogue said quickly. _'I'm done for right now. I know you and Max are right. I have ta get over all the old stuff before I should try and handle anything new,' _she thought. That was a relief, she was finally seeing sense. "_But when I'm ready, maybe you could help me with that?' _she asked as she finished washing the last dish.

'_Gladly,'_ he thought. Rogue smiled as she handed him the last plate.

* * *

Rogue laid in bed later that night. She looked over at her nightstand, her eyes glancing over the pair of hand-wraps Logan had given her earlier. She had gotten good use out of them: taking out her frustrations on a punching bag as she had planned. But ten o'clock had come all too soon and she was urged to go to sleep.

Now it was eleven- thirty-two and still she couldn't sleep. Her body, despite being exhausted, wouldn't fall asleep. She knew why, of course. Nights like these, when all she felt was fear, the only thing that would allow her to pass out would be either: utter exhaustion which she had just fallen short of during her workout, or being with Magneto.

'_I just wanna feel safe,'_ she told herself. She let out a quiet sigh as she pulled the covers off of herself.

* * *

Magneto laid down to go to sleep after a very long day.

His eyes snapped opened as he heard his cell phone ringing. He quickly summoned his phone to his hand with his abilities and answered it.

"Max?" Rogue asked him in a whisper.

"Yes?" he asked.

"About what you said earlier…" she started to whisper.

* * *

Ten minutes later Magneto was standing just outside of the institutes grounds. Next to him he had a blanket spread out on the ground. Rogue asked him to bring it, he was happy to comply. A smile came to his face as he saw his girl walking towards him.

He offered her his hand. She took it as he helped her jump over a small pile of bricks.

"Thanks for coming," she said as they both took a seat on the blanket.

"Anna, where else would I be?" he asked sincerely.

"Bed," she sighed.

"Without you," he reminded her. "I'd rather be in your company tired and awake, then well rested and alone," he said as he pulled her in close. She let out a pleasant sigh as she wrapped her an arm around him: leaning into him.

"You really mean that," she huffed happily.

"Why wouldn't I?" he asked playfully. He watched her eyes narrow as she loosed his hold on him slightly: her hand moving to his chest.

"Did you watch the tape?" she asked as her eyes refocused on him.

"Yes," he answered darkly. "… I am so sor-"

"Max, we agreed you don't have to apol-"

"Please, let me finish," he said gently. She let out a soft sigh but said nothing else. "I am so sorry it took _those_ extremes to make me see how much the captivity was affecting you. It should _never_ have come to that point. If only I hadn't let my anger get the better of me... How many times have I said_ that_ to myself?" he said disappointed.

"At the very _least_, I should have let you keep Charles' confidence," he sighed shaking his head at himself. "He would have kept the others from questioning your moods. He would have allowed the façade to continue, for a while at least, to ensure your safely," he said.

"This is better though," she asked aas her eyes searched for his. "Isn't it?" she asked as he met her gaze. He took her hand in his.

"This is _much_ better," he said before he kissed her hand. A smile came to Rogue's face. She leaded into him again as he wrapped his arm around her shoulder. In the moment that followed they were laying on the blanket in each other's arms: staring up at the stars. "Nevertheless, I believe we are still in agreement," he said.

"On what?" she asked curiously as she glanced up at him.

"Fuck her favors," he said bluntly. A smirk formed on Rogue's face. She let out a happy sigh as he watched her close her eyes. He glanced back up the stars: content.

* * *

So, yeah I'm supposed to be studying, but then I got a virus that was going my house and I got to write more! No promises on when the next chapter's coming out. I really do have to start studying hardcore. I work ten hours days so we'll see. But please let me know what you thought of this chapter!

And as always, thank you for reading ^.^


	60. Chapter 59

Sorry it's been so long everyone! Thank you so much for reading! I am not giving up on this fic. I'm about half through, I think… Not sure yet…

* * *

Please enjoy!

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Fifty-Nine:

Magneto laid on a blanket just outside the institute grounds. He glanced away from the peaceful night's sky down at his beloved. She had fallen asleep about ten or so minutes ago and now he was faced with a dilemma: wake her from the rest she desperately needed, or inform Charles of his presences.

Personally, he did wish to take either option. He had entered and exited the institute countless times without notice. He knew for a fact he could do so again but Anna would find out about his invasion next Saturday.

'_And I'll never hear the end of it,'_ he thought with an annoyed sigh. The rules they had in place were, in his option, irritating. He wasn't used to having limitations being implemented against him, not in decades. '_The girl _needs _this,_' he reminded himself yet again. _'She-'_

His thoughts were cut off when Rogue's phone began to ring. He used his powers to bring the phone to his hand: answering it. "Charles?" he asked: who else would it be at this time of night. He heard the man let out a sigh.

"You can bring her inside now," Charles said: sounding annoyed.

"I'll be there in a moment," he said before hanging up.

* * *

Five minutes later Magneto gently lowered Rogue into her bed. Charles was by the door, supervising her return. Max couldn't help but roll his eyes at the predicament as he pulled a blanket over Rogue's body.

'_Do you have any idea what time it is?'_ Charles asked annoyed.

'_I'm well aware, Charles,'_ he answer dryly, Max said as he turned to face the man.

"_Yet, you still came,_' he chastised.

'_She called me,'_ he said as he walked towards the door.

'_That doesn't mean you should have come,_' Charles said asMagneto gently closed the door to Rogue's room behind him.

'_I will not deny her,' _Max said. He started to walk down the hall; done with the conversation.

'_She's a teenage girl: _on_ occasion they need to be denied a whim,_' he said. Max stopped walking at Charles' statement. He didn't want to have another argument with the man, but he refused to allow that comment to go unaddressed.

'_A whim?' _he asked annoyed. He turned to face Charles with a look of disbelief on his own face_. 'She didn't call me on a_ whim_. She needed comfort, _support_. Should I have denied her _that_?' _Max asked with anger.

'_You are not the only one_ capable _of _giving_ her comfort,'_ Charles said as he moved closer to Magneto.

'_You honestly think I'm unaware of that? I am someone she doesn't have to explain the situation to before she can receive support. _I_ am the she called tonight. I gave her my word I would come to her if she asked. I will not break my word, no matter the inconvenience to whomever, not to Anna,'_ he said. Charles stared up at him in disbelief.

'_I don't understand. _Why_ are you giving her so much power?_' Charles asked. '_She's a teenager and you're allowing her to _dictateyour life_,' _he said.

'_She's earned it,' _he thought strongly before letting out an annoyed sigh. '_How many times must this be explained to you? How many times has Anna explained this to you? Do her words fall on deaf ears?'_ _Do you actually _want _to understand?' _he asked.

* * *

Charles eyes widened at the question. _'I have been trying,_' Charles claimed defensibly. _'But talking to Rogue is _difficult_,'_

'_I'm certain that very sentiment is shared by Rogue regarding _you_,' _Magneto said.

'_Magnus, you don't understand' _he exclaimed_,'_ every word_ that comes out of her mouth is, in one way or another, a manipulation,' _Charles said. _'She means what she says, but there's always a spin to it. She states it in such a way that I have _no choice_ but to agree with her. Meer moments after we speak, when I come back to my senses, I can't believe what Rogue's managed to get me to agree to. How can I trust that?' _he asked as he looked up at Magneto.

'_Charles, you can't _fault_ the girl for excelling at debate. If her arguments convince you every time then maybe her words are not the problem. Perhaps, your _self-confidences_ is where the true issue lies,' _he said.

'_That is _not_ the case. You've seen it, yourself. Once she decides she is going to do something then there is no talking her out of it. No matter the counter-argument,' _he said.

'_Are her decisions so _unreasonable_ that she should be talked out of them?' _Magneto asked._ 'Are you _that_ ungrateful for everything she has done for your x-men?' _he asked. Charles eyes narrowed in anger.

'_Now, see here-'_ Charles started to say.

'_I recall the instance you are referring to, Charles,' _Magneto said, refusing to allow him to speak. _'We _both _advised that she stop pushing back her feelings, face her aguish and work to put it behind her. She said _not today_. Is that really so unreasonable? It's her pain. Why should either of us get to dictate when she faces it?" _he asked.

'_Alright, on that, yes, I agree with you. But what of the other times? When she refused to get some rest before finishing those blueprints-' _he started to say.

'_There are things you do not know about that night,' he said. _

'_Such as?' _Charles asked_. _

'_I had the fragment of myself altered,' _Magneto begun to say.

'_Yes, Rogue told me. You took away her access to large chucks of information, by erasing them from the fragment's minds,' _Charles said.

'_Yes, precisely._ _Needless to say, Amelia's home for children was one of the things I was seeking to hide from her, at that time. When Rogue realized this, she panicked. She and I had an agreement at that point that she could not discuss any topic with you and yours that she and I had already had a conversation about. Amelia's, obviously, had never come up in conversation, hence she still had the freedom to speak about it with you, without going against our deal.'_

'_She had no idea when I would find out about her knowledge. She knew she had to tell you as much as she could as quickly as she could. That is why she was stubborn that night. That's usually why she is stubborn, because something of great importance is in jeopardy. Whether, you are aware of what it is or not, she is always acting in the best interest of your x-men and _then_ herself. She _always_ put herself second,' _he added._ 'Much to my annoyance,' _he added.

'_What is that supposed to mean?_' Charles asked.

'_Just that, Charles,'_ Magneto said before he started walking again. Charles followed after him, needing to take the lift himself. Magneto surprised him when he ceased walked again. Magneto turned to glance at Charles. _'You do realize what the real issue is here, don't you?'_ he asked. Charles raised an eye brow at the man's question as Magneto turned once again to face him.

'_Why don't you enlighten me?'_ he asked mockingly. Magneto chuckled softly.

'_Very well,'_ he said with a smile. _'The issue here Charles, is that you have an image in your mind of what a teenager in your care is supposed to be. Young, naive, sexually inactive, obedient to you and those whom you give authority to within your household. Rogue is none of these of things. Since she is constantly defying that image, you think she is the one who needs to modify her behavior to better suit the image you believe she must adhere too. But, what you need to understand, Charles, is that she is _not_ a child. The responsibilities she has assumed, the things she has witnessed. All of these things have made her an adult far faster than your other charges. There is nothing wrong with Rogue or her behavior in this regard,'_

'_You asked me why I allow her to dictate parts of my life. The answer again is she has earned it. She has fought me as an equal and won, Charles. On more than one occasion she has beaten me,'_ he said; his eyes lite up with pride._ 'She is my _equal_, Charles, and I treat her accordingly. She is your equal as well. Not your student, hardly your ward, and not inferior, or subordinate to you in any way. Once you are able to accept that fact, then and only then will there be peace between the two of you,' _Magneto said before he turned around and walked into the lift.

'_And that's about all I have to say on the matter. At least for tonight,'_ Magneto thought to him as the door to the elevator closed far quicker than they should have.

* * *

Charles moved down the hallways of the institute the next morning, about an hour before his students needed to leave for school. He glanced down the hall and saw that Ororo was entering one of the gyms. He moved closer to the door when he started to overhear a conversation..

"Rogue, Logan, good morning," Ororo said.

"Good morning," Rogue and Logan said within a moment of each other. He glanced inside the doorways for a quick moment. He had seen Rogue taking out some anger on a punching bag. Logan was holding the bag for her, standing behind it, keeping it steady. Ororo was sitting on one of the benches.

"Rogue, can I ask about what happened yesterday?" Ororo asked.

"Irene contacted her," Logan answered.

"Did she threaten you?" Ororo asked alarmed.

"Yup," Rogue answered bitterly as she continued to punch. Logan let out a soft growl under his breath. "Like I told Logan yesterday, I really," she started to say in between punches, "don't feel like going over it again. I already told Prof, most of it," she told them.

'_Most of it?'_ Charles asked himself.

"We must find Irene," Ororo said, "Before she has a chance to enact her threats," she said.

"I already got people on it," Rogue said. Charles raised an eyebrow at the statement.

"Magneto's people?" Ororo asked.

"Yeah," Rogue answered.

"Heh," Logan chuckled. "Guess this truces is good for something," he said.

"Give it a few months. Once Max gets used to the restrictions he's agreed to, we won't be calling it a truce anymore. It'll just be another one of his alliances," she said. "Personally, I can't wait for that to happen," she said.

"Kid, none of us are gonna be willing to start doing things for Magneto," Logan said.

"That ain't what I'm going for, Logan. He doesn't _need_ the x-men to follow his commands. He got more than enough people already. I just want the x-men officially _off _his list of enemies. Everything else can stay the way it is," she said.

"Except you are Magneto's second in command. _That_ has changed," Ororo pointed out.

"Honestly, considering what I'm up against with Irene, having those resources at the push of a button is kind of comforting. Makes me feel like I stand of chance at keeping her from getting what she wants from me," she said.

"Which is?" Ororo asked.

"I have no fucking idea," Rogue said annoyed as she punched the bag. "But if the price of those resources are a couple of afternoon interrupted by an emergency that I gotta go take charge of, than I'm okay with that. I'm willing to be that person," she said.

"Rogue, is there anything _we_ can do to help?" Ororo said.

"Just keep doing what you've been doing. Ya all, know I can't tell you everything. And sometimes, I just don't want to. Please, just- keep being as understanding as ya have been. If ya all can do that for me, I'll be okay. I mean- The support I've been getting for everyone has been one of the only things keeping me going. As long as I have that, I think I'll be okay," she said between punches. "Thanks again for the hand wraps," she said.

"Anytime, kid. Just let me know when you wear out this pair. I got more," he said.

"I will," she said. Charles let out a soft sigh as he removed away from the door. He decided for the moment not to comment on his and Magneto's conversation. Rogue had just asked, once again, for their understanding. He could do that for her. He the very least, he could try.

* * *

Very short chapter I know, but it's been forever so I'm giving you guys something to read. I have to go hardcore study for my exam now, I'm taking it in two weeks!

Thank you all for reading! And you thank you, for the lovely reviews!

I'll be back as soon as I can!

Next chapter will be Thursday April 4th 2002, a tale of two dinners!

See you soon! …ish…

On to review! I'm gonna start doing this again!

First off, thank you so much to all of you for reviewing, I'm so glad you all enjoying my fic and I really hope to keep getting your feedback and opinions!? Thank you!

Angelpaint07: Thank you! To answer your question, yes apocalypse will be a part of this story! This fan fic is going to be, pretty much, completely cannon to the show. Everything that happens in the fic capable of happening between scenes of the show So, you will see Rogue's reaction to him being mind controlled ;).

Marigab: lol, at your comment about Gambit. Ah, just wait! I noticed that too, with how Rogue feels more comfortable with Magneto's people as opposed to her 'Family.' That's true, but I hope this chapter served to show that the comfort level isn't completely off.

Mostly, it doesn't make sense to show all the scenes with Rogue relaxing with her family: watching tv, rides to school, meals where she didn't just learn something really depressing and she actually feels like having a conversation with Kurt, Kitty, or one of the others, etc. That would be mundane and not fun to read or write. I'll try to add a few more of those scenes, here and there (with a purpose, of course), but again, those scenes are mostly boring. But they do happen. A little bit.

Marigab, second review: Sorry it took me so long! I was bummed about X-men Legacy 274. Stupid ageism! Most people can't get over the image that Magneto's not an old man, but deaged to age 30! Until the comic book world can get over that Rogue/Magneto won't last long in mainstream comics, which is such a shame (No one cares if Wolverine date a 20 year old, even if he's OLDER than Magneto! AHH, don't get me started!) :deep breath: Anyone this couple will keep going in my fic at least! I will post again, soon ish

Puffxpeguin: Thank you! Yeah, that scene was very, "we're going to have a picnic at midnight?' o.O, But Rogue just didn't want to sit on the wet ground.

Sissiewest: Thank you! I couldn't end the chapter without them getting together I'm glad you liked it!

Syolie: I'm more than happy to be the cause of someone shipping Rogue/Magneto! I'm glad your enjoying it!

Blackfox Nightengale: Thank you for much! I really hope you enjoyed this chapter. I'll have more soonish

BasiaM82: Hey, no worries for the silence. Let me know when you get a change to read this! And please let me know if you want anymore feedback on your own story? I would love to help. It's sounds like a interesting story.

Frenchgurl: Sorry it took me so long! And thank you for enjoying my fic. I'll try to be better about it in the future, if my career will let me God damn bills! Why do I have to work 60 hour weeks to pay you?

Oh, and no worries about the typo. Honestly, I didn't even notice until your second review .

Zombie Pixel: Hi! Thanks for the review! I'm sure you got my PM, and yeah, your review got me to make time I didn't have to finish the chapter. And by finish, I mean finish half of it so you guys got at least 2000 words from me. Usually my chapters are about 4000 words, but I'm pressed for time, and I didn't want to wait any longer before giving you all, at least something to read! I hope to hear from you again.

That goes for everyone! Thank you again to everyone who reads and reviews!


	61. Chapter 60

Hey! I hope you all enjoy this new chapter brought to you from new shinny computer! I old laptop broke on my about two three weeks ago. So, once I had a little time to write, I of course, had no computer to work on. I got my new laptop and Dec 28th and have been writing ever since! I hope you enjoy this chapter. I'm going to try and be better about updating this year. I want to get to season 4 of the show before 2014!

Once again, thank you so much to everyone for your support and reviews! Keep them coming and I'll keep writing!

* * *

Please enjoy:

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Sixty

Rogue laid in her room on Wednesday night, anxiously waiting for the Professor to be done using the newly completed Cerebro unit. The only other person who knew Cerebro was operational was Mr. McCoy since he had assisted in fixing it. The three of them had told no one else, a precaution against Irene.

'_Rogue,'_ she heard the Professor think to her. The tone in his voice told her his results.

'_I wasn't expecting it to work,'_ she told him sadly.

'_I will keep trying to find Irene, at random,'_ he informed her.

'_Thanks,'_ she said.

* * *

Rogue sat in the back seat of a van with Ororo and the Professor as they pulled inside the McDonald's parking lot. Victor was already there, his motorcycle parked in front of McDonald's. She smiled as she saw him.

"Thanks for the ride," Rogue said as Ororo pulled up in front of Victor.

"You're very welcome," she said. Rogue returned Ororo's smile before she opened the door.

"Rogue," the Professor said calling for her attention as Victor walked closer to her.

"Yeah?" Rogue answered as she turned her head to face the Professor.

"We're just going to be running a few errands in this area," he started to say. _'I shouldn't be out of range,'_ he thought to her. She nodded. "Call me when you are finished and we will come pick you up," he said.

"Okay," Rogue said.

"There's a reason you need an escort, kiddo? " Victor asked.

"Sabortooth, no one here believes that you would harm your daughter. You are not our concern regarding Rogue's safety," the Professor said as Rogue turned to face her father.

"Irene?" Victor asked.

"Who else?" Rogue answered with a sigh. "You know who Irene sent to the institute the last time I was on my way to meet you for dinner," she said. Rogue watched Victor's eye narrow in anger. The thought of that afternoon still made her shiver in fear. She had never been in so much pain in her life. "I don't go anywhere by myself anymore," she said.

"That fucking sucks. You get any time to yourself?" he asked. Rogue let out a small laugh.

"I'm never alone," she said. "Not since my mutation manifested," she said. Victor raised an eyebrow at that.

"We'll see you in little while Rogue. Just call when you're ready," the Professor said again. Rogue nodded at him before the van pulled away. She turned her attention back to Victor.

"I'll explain a little more once we're inside? I mean, if you wanna hear it," she added quickly.

"Rogue, 'course I wanna hear about it," Victor exclaimed as a smile came to Rogue's face. "I wanna fucking hear it _all_," he said. Rogue felt tears forming in her eyes. This was really happening. She had dreams like this. She hugged her father. He was stiff for a moment, clearly not used to receiving this form of affection, but soon enough he returned the hug.

"I wanna hear everything's that been going on in your life too. I've missed you, Dad," she said as she glanced up at her father.

"I fucking missed the shit of you, kiddo," Victor said. "Never fucking thought we'd be here.

Thought, I lost my daughter to that cunt," he said.

"You didn't lose me," Rogue said. "Irene just kind of stole me for a while," Rogue said.

"Seven fucking years," he said angry.

"Guess we should start making up for lost time then," Rogue said with a smile.

* * *

On Thursday night Magneto sat in a restaurant he owned on the island of Hilo, at a large round table. The table was large enough to host six. He always prefer to have more room, rather than less while eating. The table was far enough removed from the rest of the restaurant that he was certain their conversation would not be overheard. His daughters were on their way to the restaurant; his son was moments away from joining as well. _'I have a minute,'_ he thought as he pulled out his phone and dialed Anna's number.

"Hey, Max," she said. "What's up?" she asked with a yawn as he glanced around the restaurant.

"I didn't wake you, did I? It should only be," he started to say as he glanced at his watch on his wrist, "nine-thirty in New York," he said.

"It is. I'm just getting ready for bed," she said

"How was dinner with Victor?" he asked.

"It was good," she laughed. "We talked about stuff. I filled him in on the basics of everything. He wants to know more about me being second in command. But we were kind of playing it safe with the conversation. Both of us were shying away from all the touchy subjects. It was nice. A little nerve racking but mostly we just talked and ate and got used to considering each other _family_ again. It's still a little weird calling him Dad," she said: he could hear the smile in her voice. Better yet, he could hear how relaxed she sounded.

"You'll grow accustomed to it again, I'm sure," he said.

"Yeah, I know," she sighed happily. "We're gonna go play pool next Friday. He said he always wanted to teach me. I'm really looking forward to it," she said as he saw a teenager walked past his view.

'_Is that?_' he started to ask himself as made eye contact with the young man. He was met with wide eyes.

"Max?" Rogue asked.

"My apologizes, Anna. I'm very glad to hear you had a good day," he started to say as he let out a soft laugh. "I'm staring at a very surprised _Alex Masters_, right now."

* * *

Alex Masters stood in the a restaurant his girlfriend had asked him to meet her at. He was about ten minutes early, which he thought wouldn't be a big deal until he spotted Magneto sitting across the restaurant. He fought the urge to run.

_'What? Magneto's here,'_ he thought shocked. '_Do not create a scene, man. Do not create a scene,'_ he thought nervously. His brother, Scott Summers, might be open about his mutation in Bayville, but only Alex's parents knew about his powers. He didn't want to start a fight, not here. _'I just gotta ignore him,' _he told himself. _'Maybe, he'll ignore me,'_ he thought hopefully.

"This way," the hostess said.

"Huh- what?" he asked, the hostess' voice pulling him out of his thoughts.

"This way. I'll show you to the table," she said.

"Ah, thanks," he said before she started to walk. He followed her as he made eye contact with Magneto. _'This is not good,'_ he thought as the hostess led him closer and closer to the table Magneto was at. _'Come on, stop at _any_ other table,'_ he thought desperately. Instead the hostess stopped right in front of the table Magneto was seated at.

"Here's the table," the hostess said. "Mr. Lehnsherr," she said turning to speak with Magneto, "this is your daughter's guest."

"My_ daughter's_ guest," Magneto repeated darkly as he maintained eye contact. He felt his eyes widened in fear.

"You're Lorna's dad?" Alex asked out loud before he could stop himself.

"Yes, Alex, I am _Lorna Dane's_ father," Magneto asked.

"I- ah- I can wait for her out si-," Alex said.

"There's no need for that," Magneto said as he gestured to the table. "By all means," Magneto started to say as he felt the chair's headrest bump into his hand. Was that a threat? It felt like a threat. "Have a seat," Magneto ordered.

"Ah, o-okay," Alex said as he sat down quickly.

"Thank you very much, Nani," he said

"Yes, Mr. Lehnsherr," Nani, the hostess said before she left the table.

"So, Alex," Magneto started to say. "Why did Lorna invite you here to dinner?" he asked.

"Listen man, I think I should just go," Alex started to say.

"Are you and Lorna dating, Alex?" he asked firmly.

"I- yeah," Alex said.

"Will you cease dating her because you have become aware I am her father?" Magneto asked.

"I-" Alex started to say, caught off guard by the question. '_Man, I can't do that. Lorna can't help who her father is,_' he thought to himself. "… I really like her," Alex exclaimed. Magneto nodded at him.

"Then, I believe you should start answering my questions," Magneto said. "Why did Lorna invite you here to dinner?" he asked again.

"Ah- she wanted me to meet her family," Alex answered.

"Have you met Sarah Ryall, yet?" Magneto asked.

"Yeah," Alex answered. "I've been over at Lorna's house before. Sarah kinda insisted I stay over for dinner a few times," he said. Magneto smiled at that.

"Sarah has always been a very caring women," Magneto said. "Have you met Wanda before?" he asked.

"A couple of times. Wanda was at the surfing contest a few weeks back," Alex said.

"Of course. You have also, met Pietro before on Asteroid M. Lorna will be pleased to hear we have all already met," Magneto said as he sat back in his seat. He picked up a glass of water from the table. "So, what exactly are your intentions with my daughters?" he asked.

"I really like her," Alex said honestly.

"So, you have said before," he said. "How long have you two been involved, Alex?" he asked.

"Like five months," he answered. "Magne-" he started to say before Magneto's eyes narrowed.

"Mr. Lehnsherr," Magneto corrected firmly.

"Mr. Lehnsherr," Alex repeated. "Can- can I ask you something?" he asked. Magneto raised an eyebrow at that.

"Yes?" he asked.

"Is Lorna a mutant?" he asked. Magneto looked surprised.

"Yes," he answered after a moment. Alex let out a sigh of relief.

"Man, that's- that's _awesome_," he smiled. "I so was worried about that," he muttered.

"Why?" Magneto asked dryly.

"I haven't told Lorna that I'm a mutant. I was so worried that she- I didn't know what she thought about- I was-" he started to say before he stopped to take a breath. "I was afraid she might, you know, hate us or something," he said. Magneto let out amused huff.

"I think that's the last thing you need to fear in regards to my daughter," he said with a soft chuckle.

"Yeah, I get that _now_," Alex said as he Magneto looking past him. Alex turned to see what Magneto was looking at.

* * *

Magneto saw his son Pietro walking up to the table. Pietro looked at him with a raised eyebrow. Magneto gestured towards a chair: letting his son know that he should join them. Pietro nodded before sitting down next to Alex.

"Hey, Dad," Pietro said as Magneto looked past Alex again to see Wanda and Lorna entering the restaurant. Wanda was dressed in her usual Gothic attire. Lorna's style of dress was more mainstream; although, he had never seen her not wearing at least one article of green clothing. This time she wore a short sleeve t-shirt matching the natural tone of her green hair almost perfectly.

"Pietro," he said with a smile. "I'm glad you were able to come. I'm certain you remember Alex Masters," Magneto said.

"Yeah. Hi," Pietro said uncomfortably as Lorna waved to them.

"Hey," Alex said before he waved back to Lorna smiling. "Ah, excuse me," Alex said as he stood up and walked over to his daughters.

"Apparently, the _surfer_ is Lorna's _boyfriend,_" Magneto said a bit of disdain in his tone: answering the question he knew was on the tip of his son's tongue.

"What?" Pietro exclaimed as he saw Lorna and Alex talking. "Really?" he asked. "Is this a late April fool's day joke?" he asked. Magneto chuckled as he saw Lorna and Alex head outside of the restaurant.

"I plan to ask your sister that same question," Magneto joked. Pietro let out a snicker as Magneto's phone rung. "Excuse me a moment, " he said as he picked up the phone. "It's nearly ten pm in New York, Anna Marie. Go to sleep," he playfully ordered.

"Max," Rogue said warningly.

"I was nice to the boy, as promised. But Anna, he's dating my daughter. I have to give him _somewhat_ of a hard time," he said.

"Ah-huh," she said unamused. "Just don't scare the shit out of him," she ordered.

"Fine, fine," he muttered quickly. "Good night, Anna," he said.

"Good night," she yawned before he hung up the phone.

* * *

Alex took hold of Lorna hand once he walked up to her.

"Hi Alex," Wanda said.

"Hey, Wanda," Alex said.

"Hey, sorry we were a few minutes late," Lorna said with a smile.

"Don't sweat it," Alex said with a smile. "Can I talk to you outside?" he asked.

"Yeah, sure," Lorna said. "Wanda, we'll meet you guys at the table, okay?" she said.

"Just don't take too long," Wanda warned. "You know how father gets," she said.

"We won't," Lorna smiled before Alex led her outside of the restaurant. "What's up?" she asked.

"I've met your Dad before," he told her.

"Really?" she asked excited. "Where?" she asked.

"On Asteroid M," he said.

"What's Asteroid M?" she asked confused.

"Never mind, I'll tell you later. Look I- I know you're a mutant," he said as he saw her smile begin to fade. "But it's okay," he said with a smile, as he started concentrated on calling upon his powers. His hands illuminated with a red light. "I'm a mutant too," he said as he stop concentrating and the red energy dissipated.

"That's great," Lorna exclaimed before she hugged him. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you," she started to say as he returned her hug.

"Me too," he said. "I was so worried-" he started to say as she backed out of his arms.

"I was worried too," she exclaimed. "I thought-" she started to say.

"I know, me too," he smiled before they hugged again. They parted from the hug. She took hold of his hand before they started heading back into the restaurant. "You know something? Your dad is one scary dude," he said.

"Yeah," she smiled. "But only to people he doesn't like," she said with a shrug.

"Great," he said sarcastically.

"Alex, he doesn't know you like I do. Give it a little time, okay?" she asked before she gave him a kiss on the cheek.

"Okay," Alex said with a slight smile.

* * *

"Father," Wanda said as she approached the table. Magneto stood to greet her.

"Hello Wanda," he said before he kissed her cheek. "How are you?" he asked.

"I'm good," she answered as she took a seat next to Pietro. "How are you?" she asked.

"I'm very well," he answered.

"Did you see Lorna's _boyfriend_?" Pietro asked.

"Yeah, I've met him a few times," Wanda answered.

"What do yo think of him?" Magneto asked her seriously.

"He's smarter than looks," Wanda said.

"Is he?" Magneto asked. He trusted his daughters option. She had always been a excellent judge of character.

"Did Lorna _ask_ you if she could bring him to dinner?" Pietro asked.

"No," he answered dryly. He heard Pietro let out a sigh.

"Are you going to let him stay?" Wanda asked. "She was really excited for you to meet him," she said.

"But he's Cyclops' little brother," Pietro exclaimed.

"Really?" Wanda asked surprised.

"Although, that is true; the boy _could_ have chosen to live at Xavier's. He elected not too. Besides with our current truce with the X-Men, that is not an issue I'm concerned with. It's certainly not a reason to be opposed to them dating," he said. Magneto let out a sigh as he children waited for him to give them answer.

"I'm confident we'll find _others_ reasons to be opposed to it throughout the course of dinner," Magneto said before Pietro snickered again. "But for future reference, I do _not_ wish to be _bombarded_ with an extra presence at dinner. I would like a _warning_ if either of you would like to introduce me to a significant other," he ordered.

"Yes sir," Wanda and Pietro said in unison.

"Thank you," Magneto said as he saw Alex and Lorna heading back towards the table. Their waitress also walked up to their table.

"Can I get you guys started with drinks?" the waitress asked as she took out a little note pad and pen.

"I'll have an iced tea," Magneto said as the waitress began to write.

"Pepsi for me," Pietro said.

"I'll take an iced tea too," Wanda said as Lorna walked up to the table. Magneto stood to greet her.

"Hi Daddy," Lorna beamed.

"Hello, Lorna," Max said pleasantly as he hugged his daughter. "A little warning next time," he whispered into her ear. She backed out of his hold.

"Sorry, Daddy," she said sheepishly as she stared up at him.

"It's alright," Magneto sighed; he was far too lenient with his youngest. He saw Pietro roll his eyes. "What would you like to drink?" he asked as he gestured for Lorna to sit.

"Root Beer," Lorna said as she sat down next to Wanda. Magneto retook his seat as well.

"Alex?" Magneto started to ask as all eyes turned towards Alex. The poor boy looked like a deer caught in the headlights. "Would you like anything to drink?" he asked.

"Hmm, Pepsi or Coke's good," he said.

"We have Pepsi," the waitress said.

"Okay," Alex said with nod.

"I'll be back with your drinks in a few," the waitress said.

"So, you met Alex," Lorna said with a huge smile as the waitress departed.

"Yes, I have," Magneto said as he made eye contact with the boy again. "Alex. Sit," he ordered. He knew the look on his face would compel the boy to listen to him. "Can I assume you two met at school?" he asked as Alex took a seat next to Lorna.

"Yeah, we have a lot of classes together," Alex answered nervously.

"They're also both in the Geology club," Wanda told him.

"Really?" Magneto asked, interested. Geology was Lorna's favorite subject. She has dozen of books. It would certainly be good for her if she had someone she could share her love of that subject with.

"Yeah," Alex answered.

"How long have you been in the Geology club?" Magneto asked.

"About a year now," Alex answered.

"Me and Alex are the founders members," Lorna beamed.

"What does the club do during meetings?" he asked.

"Daddy, do you remember that field trip I went on last month?" Lorna asked.

"To Mauna Kea?" Magneto asked.

"Yeah, that was my dad's field trip. He's a Geology professor at the Univeristy of Hawaii. Usually, he can only bring me. But I kept mentioning the trip and Lorna said she really wanted to go. My dad pulled some strings with his department and got the all clear to bring the whole Geology club," Alex said.

"It was awesome,," Lorna giggled "We got to go on a tour of the Mauna Kea observatories. But not everyone was into going to a volcano," Lorna started to say.

"I don't know _what_ was eating Jimmy that day. We got to look through the _UH 0.6, telescope_," Alex said with a smile.

"That was _so_ cool," Lorna exclaimed.

"Yeah, it was," Alex smiled.

"Okay, _nerds_," Pietro muttered while rolling his eyes. Wanda lightly punched Pietro on the arm.

"Thank you, Wanda," Magneto said. Wanda just smiled as Pietro glared at her.

"We're in the surfing club too," Alex added, he assumed for Pietro's benefit.

"Oh man, I can't _wait_ for the surfing contest next weekend in Cabo," Lorna said.

"Me either," Alex said. "Dude, eight more days and we're gonna be surfing in Mexico," he said before him and Lorna high-fived.

"Sarah told you all about it right?" Lorna asked.

"Yes, she informed me of the details," Magneto said.

"Wanda, thanks again for being willing to come with us," Lorna started to say.

"Yeah, thanks, Wanda. My mom couldn't get the time off of work. You and Sarah are the reasons I'm going to be able to go. I owe you both big time," Alex said.

"You don't owe me anything, Alex. I get to go on a vacation with my little sister and one of her best friends. How could I say no to that? I think it's going to be a lot of fun," Wanda said.

"Man, the waves are gonna be _prime_ this time of year. I am so pumped for the semi-pros," Alex said.

"Too bad _my_ moves are going to blow _yours_ out of the pipeline," Lorna teased.

"In your dreams, Lorna," Alex teased back, before they both laughed.

"I think Sarah might beat _both_ of you," Wanda said.

"Yes, she is very good," Magneto agreed.

"We're just gonna have to wait and see, man," Alex said. Magneto smiled at the exchange. Although Pietro, he noted, looked bored.

* * *

Magneto still sat with his children in his restaurant, eating and enjoying their company. They had finished their dinners and were now consuming their desserts.

"And then Wanda hides," Pietro continued to say in between bites of his banana-split, "my train set in _your_ closet, dad," he said.

"It took him _all day_ to find it, Wanda added as they all laughed.

"That must have been a bummer," Alex said.

"He was whining about it _all _day," Wanda teased.

"I was not _whining_. I kept asking you about it because I _wanted my train back_," Pietro exclaimed. Magneto let out a soft chuckle.

"I feel terrible for Sarah. All the high-jinx she had to defuse from you two little terrors," Magneto said humorously. There was echo of laughter.

"We wouldn't _that_ bad," Wanda claimed. "Until our powers manifested," she added with an smirk.

"Now _these_ stories I need to hear," Magneto said with a chuckle.

"Nineteen-ninety-six?" Wanda asked looking at Pietro. He nodded.

"You tell it," he said.

"Alright," Wanda said with a nod, "So, that first year we have our powers. Well, Pietro got his powers first," she started to say.

"Wait, I thought your powers manifested the _second_ week of April," Magneto said confused. "Unless, I'm remembering the date wrong?" he asked.

"No, father, you're _not_. Pietro _told us_ that he got his powers on April tenth, but he actually got them the middle of February," Wanda said.

"No," Magneto muttered in disbelief. "You waited to tell us?" he asked.

"I wanted my revenge from the year before when she put_ hot pepper sauce_ in my soup," he said defensively. "I was in bed all day that April fools days-"

"_Pretending_ to be sick," Wanda cut in.

"I was _actually_ sick," Pietro said.

"No, he wasn't," she said shaking her head.

"Yes, I was," he exclaimed. "I was _defenseless_ that year. I wasn't trying to get even from the year before. I didn't play _any_ tricks on her that year. I was laying in bed all day, coughing my lungs out, minding my own business. And Wanda spiked my soup with a lot of-,"

"It was like a _teaspoon_ of hot sauce," Wanda interjected.

"It was half the bottle," he exclaimed.

"You were sick i_n bed_ all day. How could you know how much I used?" Wanda asked.

"I checked the bottle," he said dryly.

"But you were sick. All like, Sarah, I'm too weak to stand, please bring me tissues and my comic books and a glass of water," she said mockingly.

"I could stand," he said rolling his eyes. "Anyway, back to Nineteen-ninety-six," he started to say.

"You would have let her brought the bathroom to you, if you could," Wanda said.

"I would not have," Pietro insisted.

"You weren't sick," Wanda muttered.

"Yes, I was," Pietro said one more time. "That morning, in _nineteen-ninety-six_, Wanda goes and gets an apple. I sitting next to her at the kitchen table," he starts to say.

"One second the apple is there on the table," Wanda started to say, "I turn my head for_ a second_, then it's an _orange_. I blink it's an apple again. I go to take a bite of the apple and then I tasted _Banana_. I open my eyes and then I still have an apple in my hand and it has a bite in it," she exclaimed.

"The look on your face, Wanda, was _so_ worth it," Pietro laughed.

"I go to put the apple down on the table. I blink again, and I swear for a second his _toy train_ is on the table," she said as Magneto let out a loud laugh. "I thought I was going insane," she said. "A week passes and _finally_ he tells everyone he has powers."

"I know I could have told Sarah what my powers were right after that day, but wanted to wait till we had dinner with you. When I finally told you guys that I had my powers-"

"I just gave him the dirtiest looks," Wanda said. "Cause I _knew_," she said

"Of course, you knew. I knew you were gonna get what I did as soon as I told dad about my powers. Oh, but she got back at me the next year when her powers manifest. That was the _worst_ year for me," he said.

"Yeah, well that's what you get," Wanda said with smirk.

"What did she do?" Alex asked.

"_Everything_," Pietro said.

"I can alter probability," Wanda explained.

"So in, nineteen-ninety-seven, everything was going wrong. I was walking, I tripped. I went to sharping my pencil, the machine wouldn't work. I used the drinking fountain in the park, the water shot in my face. Everything that could go wrong, did," Pietro said.

"Murphy's law," Alex laughed as he shook his head. Magneto gave Alex a thoughtful look because of his reference. Max made eye contact with Wanda; the look in her eye screamed, 'told you so.'

"No, Wanda's powers," Pietro exclaimed. " And Wanda's all like, 'I'm sorry you're having such bad luck, Pietro,'" in a mocking high pitched voice that made Lorna laugh louder. "And I'm all like, 'You aren't sorry. You're_ causing_ it,'" he exclaimed. "Wanda had her powers for months before April fool's day that year. So, I knew and Sarah _had_ to have known. But of course, Wanda pulls off her old, I'm just a little girl with pig tails, in my little red dress. I'm not capable of evil," Pietro said.

"Oh, like I'm the only one who used _that,_" she said.

"I never wore a little red dress," Pietro said as everyone laughed.

"I should hope not," Magneto laughed.

"But you were always staring up at Sarah with your puppy dogs eyes. Saying, "I didn't do it,'" Wanda said mockingly. "Meanwhile, my shoelaces are tied together, _again_. You had her wrapped around you're little finger," Wanda said.

"So, what you're both telling me, if that I owe Sarah a significant increase in salary for enduring your two," Magneto said jokingly. Everyone at the table fell into a fit of laughter.

"I'm sure she wouldn't_ complain_," Lorna said sweetly: which was met with another round of laughter. He noticed Alex was rubbing his hands again.

"Hand cramps?" Magneto asked, making eye contact with Alex.

"Yeah," he answered as he continued to rub his hand joints.

"Xavier didn't do anything to help?" Magneto asked.

"I-ah- I didn't want to move to Bayville. Having Scott back in my life is great. We're really starting to connect again, but I'm still getting to know him. I'm not ready to drop my whole life to go live three thousand miles away from my parents," Alex explained.

"Of course," Magneto agreed. There was a chance here to recruit this boy. If he and his daughter were going to continue to date he would prefer if the boy was among his ranks rather than Charles'. "Wanda, when you have a chance see if there's anything you can do to help with his pain," he ordered lightly. Alex's eyes widened in fear. The boy clearly knew where he was going with this.

"That's o-" Alex started to say nervously.

"What are his powers?" Wanda asked.

"Like Scott Summer's except the energy is released from his hands as opposed to his eyes," Magneto answered.

"Ambient energies?" Wanda asked. Magneto nodded. "I'll see what I can do," Wanda told him. "Alex, I'm just going to need you to answer a lot a of questions. Were you two planning to hang out this weekend?" she asked.

"Yeah, at the beach," Alex said.

"We're getting ready for the contest," Lorna added.

"Alright, you two come back to our house for dinner and we'll talk then," Wanda said.

"I ah- " Alex started to stutter.

"Alex, I recall making you promise the first day we met," Magneto said.

"Yeah, but. It's okay, I don't need-" Alex started to say.

"You don't need what? My help?" Magneto asked. "I believe you do, Alex," Magneto said. "You've elected _not_ to join the X-Men. You have already stated your reasons and valid they most certainly are, but with that choice you have denied yourself assistants with your developing powers. A service _every_ young mutant is in need of. I do not want you to misunderstand, Alex. This is not a recruitment speech, not like last time. You are involved with my daughter. She clearly cares for you. She wouldn't have introduced us if she wasn't serious about your relationship. For that reason alone, I wish for Wanda and you to have a conversation to see if she can assistant you."

"I don't- I don't know what to say, man," Alex said. "The last time we met, you lied to me," he said.

"Did I? My machine enhanced your powers, did it not? That enhancement was temporary and not without side effects, but you no longer had pain from your powers, did you Alex?" he asked.

"Well, no," Alex said reluctantly.

"And isn't that what I promised?" Magneto asked.

"But the pain came back," Alex objected.

"I know, Alex," Magneto said sadly. "The machines effects were not the preeminent solution I had hoped it would be," he said. "I've abandoned the enhancer since it's last failure. That I want you and Wanda to speak. To see what steps can be taken to help you," Magneto said.

"I- okay," Alex said hesitantly.

"Thanks Wanda," Lorna said with a huge grin. She was clearly happy that her boyfriend was being accepted. "Thank you, Daddy," she said.

"You're very welcome," Magneto said with a smile.

"I should get going. My parents are expecting me home soon,"Alex said.

"You have a means home?" Magneto asked.

"My house isn't that far from here. I'm just gonna walk," Alex answered as he stood up.

"It was good to see you again, Alex," Magneto said as he stood, he offered his hand to Alex.

"Thank you for dinner, Mr. Lehnsherr," Alex said as they shook hands.

"You're welcome, Alex" Magneto said.

* * *

Thank you for reading! Please review!


	62. Chapter 61

To Angelpaint07: who asked me to update today, it's the shortest chapter I have published, but you got it! I updated! :) I hope you enjoy it!

Please enjoy,

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Sixty-One.

Magneto sat with his children in the restaurant he owned on the Hawaiian island of Hilo. Alex Masters had just left them.

"So, do you like him?" Lorna asked: while she looked at him hopefully.

"I would like to get to him know him better. But I currently do not disapprove of him," Magneto answered. Lorna was beyond happy with his answer. "There is something else I would like to discus tonight. The subject is rather personal so I waited for Alex to depart," he said to say.

"Father, is everything alright?" Wanda asked. "Are _you_ alright?" she asked, concern in her voice.

"I am perfectly fine," he said reassuringly.

"Is this about your past?" Pietro asked. He saw Wanda's eyes lite up in interest. His past was a taboo subject, all his children were aware of that.

"Yes," Max answered. "Decades ago, before any of you were born, I was a fugitive on the run from various governments. It came to the point was I unable to use my name. So, I adopted the alias, Eric Magnus Lehnsherr," he said as all three of his children eyes widen in shock. "For the last fifty years or so that has been my name," he explained.

"However, recently I have started to use the name my parents gave me and I thought you should all be aware of that," he said. Pietro and Wanda glanced at each other. It was clear neither of them were sure what to say to that.

"Is is because of Rogue?" Pietro asked hesitantly.

"Yes," Magneto answered with a smile.

"The commodore?" Wanda asked.

"Yes," Magneto answered again with a slight chuckle. "Last year when Anna used her abilities on me, she absorbed a copy of my memories into her mind. She gained access to very intimate secrets I have never told another living soul, never mind someone who at the time I regarded as an enemy. She and I have had several conversations about it, of course. Through those conversations we have built a friendship. I'm the only person who regularly calls her Anna and somewhere along the way she started to call me by my given name as well. Which is Max Eisenhardt. Of course, I would still prefer if all of you would call me _dad,_ in some variation," Max finished lightheartedly. The three of them let out a soft laugh.

"Daddy, why were you on the run?" Lorna asked.

"He said he was fugitive," Wanda answered.

"Yeah, but what happened?" Lorna asked.

"Lorna," Wanda reprimanded lightly.

"It's a fair question," Max said as his children glanced up at him. "But the story of my past is a long _painful_ one. I do plan to tell you all, but- ... perhaps not for a few more years," Max said.

"Father, whenever you would like to tell us, we would like to hear it," Wanda said.

"Thank you," Max said with a smile.

* * *

It was Friday afternoon as Charles Xavier let out a sigh from inside his Cerebro unit, which was currently being kept inside a small closet area. The room also had a small desk. He had been using this room as his office since the mansion had been destroyed.

_'By Magneto,_' he thought in anger. He took a deep breath. Those thoughts were not going to help anything. He had more important things to be thinking about.

Once again, he was trying to find Irene and once again he found himself unable to do so.

_'Rogue, told me she wasn't expecting it to work,'_ he thought to himself as he let out a tired sigh. _'But _why_ won't it work?'_ he asked himself. He closed his eyes, altering his focus on a different target. This time searching by location instead of attempting to find one individual. His attention was centered on where Amelia's home of ward-way children should be, but he found no mutant activity within a two mile radius of the facility.

_'It's a Friday afternoon. I cannot believe that not _one_ of Miss. Voght's charges are not using their powers. How many people have access to this technology?'_ he thought in frustration as he lifted the helmet off if his head. He placed it back on it's stand.

He knew Magneto was well able to cloak his mind from him. He must have shared that technology with Amelia Voght to keep her charges safe. '_Magneto's future army,_' he reminded himself grimly.

He needed to know more.

_'And I can't ask Rogue,'_ he thought frustrated. All of his questions that she would have the power to answer would require a search in her mind for answers. _'I can't ask that of her, not now. Not until she decides she is ready to resume her own questioning. It could very well be months before that she feels up to undertaking that task,' _he thought as he turned to his desk. A large stake of papers rested on it. On the top of it was a copy of a brochure for Amelia's home. _'Perhaps, there's another way,_' he thought before he picked up the phone off of his desk and dialed a number.

* * *

Saturday morning Rogue followed Magneto into the back room of the cafe. She took a seat on the couch as she watched him glance around the room. A few moments later he sat down on the couch beside her.

"We're secure," he told her. She let out a sigh in relief as she rested her head against his shoulder and yawned. "Tired?" he asked.

"I haven't been sleeping that well this week," she told him.

"Is there anything I can do to help?" he asked. She took his hand in hers, before she leaned up and kissed him.

"You already do a lot," she told him. He smiled at that as she laid down on the couch. Putting her legs over his lap. "How was dinner?" she asked as he rested his hand on her leg.

"A great deal of fun," Magneto said pleasantly. She smiled at that. "Thank you," he added.

"Your welcome," she said.

"You're welcome to look at the conversation later," he said.

"I don't need to know everything," she said.

"Since when, precisely?" he asked with a smirk. She playfully punched his side as he let out a chuckle.

"Did you tell them your name?" she asked.

"See? It took you less than _half a minute_ to ask me another question," he laughed.

"I can't ask?" she laughed.

"Of course, you can," he smirked.. "And yes, I did," he answered.

"But nothing else," she guessed.

"We were having a pleasant evening. I did not wish to ruin the mood with talks of the Holocaust," he said simply.

"I don't blame ya," Rogue said. Magneto let out a sigh.

"We should talk about Raven," he said.

"Yeah, I know," Rogue sighed.

"Are you-" he started to ask.

"There's really nothing I can do about it," Rogue said. "It still hurts, but- It's not like this is the first time she's let me down and I doubt this is gonna be the last fucked up thing she does to me. So, I'll deal," Rogue shrugged. "Last thing I wanna do is talk about it," she added. He nodded.

"But is there anything else I should know?" he asked.

"I don't think so," she answered. "Do Victor find anything else missing in your base?" she asked.

"Twelve days worth of supplies of the solution I was using to keep Raven sedated was taken," he answered.

"Great. She gave us a time frame," Rogue said annoyed as she rolled her eyes.

"Next Saturday," Magneto nodded. .

"Oh yeah," Rogue said with a slight smile.

"Yes?" he asked.

"Institute's suppose to be up and running by then. Prof wanted me to ask you if we could meet at five pm next Saturday. He wants me to be there while we're putting the house in order," she told him.

"Do _you_ want to be there to put the house in order?" Max asked.

"Yeah," she answered with a smile.

"Five pm it is," he said with a smile.

"Maybe you can help me move my stuff into the house," Rogue teased with a smirk.

"Oh yes, Charles would absolutely _love_ that," Max said dryly as Rogue let out a laugh. "Actually, I've been meaning to ask you," he started to say.

"Yeah?" Rogue asked.

"Your belongings are still waiting for you in Jericho. Would you like any of them returned to you?" he asked.

"I don't- I don't know, Max-" she started to say: feeling guilty all of her stuff had survived the destruction of the mansion.

"It's alright, Anna," he said reassuringly as he rubbed her leg. "There's no time frame that must be adhered too for this issue. Take all the time you need, my girl. You are always welcome in my house and your belongings are not going anywhere unless you wish it," he said.

"You are so good ta me," she said with a smile.

"I've been trying, at late," he said. She lifted herself up. His arm looped around her waist supporting her as she kissed him.

"You've been getting it right," she said before their lips meet again.

* * *

Charles Xavier sat in his car with Hank. They had been driving for some time now and were now sitting outside of Amelia Voght's home for Wayward Children. Once again he used his powers to scan the area, he did not sense a single living thing. But now, glancing at the grounds himself he could see a number of children and teenagers running about.

_'How?'_ he asked himself in frustration.

"Charles," Hank said from the drivers seat; pulling Charles our of his thoughts. "Are you certain this is a good idea?" he asked. "We are at peace now, aren't we? Perhaps we shouldn't rock the boat," Hank suggested. Charles let out a sigh.

"We are just going to have a conversation, that's all," Charles said as the front gates opened.

"You two talked over the phone, didn't you?" Hank asked.

"Yes-" Charles admitted. "And Miss. Voght agreed that we should meet in person," Charles to say as he continued to glance at the Miss Voght's many wards, "please dri-," he started to say as he caught slight of one of the last people he ever thought he would see. "What?" he muttered to himself in confusion.

"Charles?" Hank concerned. It was then the young girl in question caught slight of them. She glanced up, meeting Charles gaze like a deer caught in the headlights. "Charles, what are you looking at-" Hank started to ask- "Is that_ Jubilee_?" he asked confounded.

"Yes, I-" Charles started to say, as a look of pure fear crossed Jubilee's face, "yes, I believe that is," he finished astounded.

"Oh, my stars and garters... What is she doing here?" he asked. "She went home with her parents, didn't she?" he asked.

"I had thought so. I watched her leave her them," he exclaimed. "But then- but then again, I have been mistaken about so many things I thought were true lately. I don't suppose I should be surprised anymore," Charles muttered wearily, mostly to himself. Charles shook her head, trying to gain a hold of himself. "Hank, please drive," Charles finally finished.

* * *

That's all I have time to write right now! Usually, this would be the first half of a chapter, but I'm so pressed for time right now. I only have one more exam to go and then I will have tons of time to write again! I hope you guys enjoyed it, please review!?

Speaking of which:

Angelpaint07: Thank you for both reviews! I hope you enjoyed this teaser of a chapter :)

Warrioroftheseventhstar: Thank you so much! My family dinners are all kinds of funny and I tried to capture that with the mood with Pietro and Wanda, a lot of history and real emotions between the two. I'm so glad it worked! Thank you for the feedback. :)

Marigab: They won't be happy for too long. There's not way it can last more than a week :p God knows there are way too many plot twists I still need to reveal in the fic. Yeah, I still don't know when Max is going to tell his kids about how involved he is with Rogue. He really doesn't want to, and Rogue has no problem with keeping things low-key in public. It might be a while...

sissiewest: Thanks!

Zombie Pixel: Thank you!

Sun: Thank you very much! I've been trying to keep a balance and just have all the characters be themselves. :)

musicaddict1700: I'll try to keep writing more! Seriously, there is not enough Rogue/Magneto fics out there. Other people need to get in this bandwagon! I'm pretty sure I've read all of them and OH MY GOD do I want more! I guess I'll have to keep writing :) Thank you very much for reading my fic!

And as always, thank you to everyone for reading!


	63. Chapter 62

Please enjoy,

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Sixty-Two.

Sunday morning Rogue and Kitty walked into the kitchen earlier than everyone else. It was their turn to cook breakfast.

"French toast, here we come," Kitty exclaimed.

"You know _I'm_ cook-" Rogue started to say as they saw Jubilee sitting at the table._ 'What?_' Rogue asked herself shocked to see her.

"Jubilee! You're back," Kitty exclaimed happily. Jubilee glanced up from her bowl of cereal.

"Yeah," Jubilee answered quietly.

"That's so great," Kitty said. "We missed you," she said with a smile. A small smile came to Jubilee's face, but only for a moment.

"Thanks, Kitty," Jubilee said.

"When did you get back?" Kitty asked as she sat down at the table across from Jubilee.

"Yesterday night with the Professor," Jubilee answered.

"Huh? I thought Prof went to Amelia's yesterday?" Rogue asked with a raised eyebrow as she sat down next to Kitty.

"The orphanage?" Kitty asked concerned.

"He did," Jubilee said sadly.

_'Oh no,' _ Rogue thought alarmed. "Is tha-" Rogue started to ask out loud.

"You okay?" Kitty asked.

"No," Jubilee answered, shaking her head sadly.

"What's wrong?" Kitty asked.

"Kitty, what do you _think_ is wrong?" Rogue asked a little annoyed.

"W-what do yo-?" Kitty started to ask before her eyes widened. "Oh my god," Kitty exclaimed.

"Look, I don't want to talk about it," Jubilee exclaimed: as tears started to form in her eyes.

"O- okay," Kitty said: her voice apologetic.

"No one here would even understand what I'm going through anyway," Jubilee said softly. "You're all happy and just- you wouldn't get it. I just-" she said as she stood up. "You wouldn't get it," she exclaimed as she turned to leave the room. Rogue and Kitty looked at each other for a moment.

"You _were_ at Amelia's, right?" Rogue asked.

"Yeah. Not that that's any of _your_ business," Jubilee yelled bitterly as she kept walking.

"I used to live there too. My birth mother was murdered," Rogue said as Jubilee stopped dead in her tracks.

"Murdered," Jubilee muttered as she turned to face Rogue. "That's- that's how I lost my parents too," Jubilee whispered: tears in her eyes as she met Rogue's gaze.

"I am so sorry," Rogue said earnestly.

"I-" Jubilee stuttered crying, as Kitty ran over to her and pulled her into a hug. Rogue watched Jubilee let go and cry against Kitty.

* * *

About ten minutes later the three of them were sitting at the table again. Kitty was sitting next to Jubilee her hand on Jubilee's back rubbing slightly. Rogue sat across from them both. Jubilee had calmed down a bit, at least she wasn't crying anymore. Jubilee grabbed another tissue out of the box on the table, that Rogue had retrieved.

"I'm sure the last thing wanna do is talk about it, but if you do I'm willing to listen," Rogue said.

"_Whatever_ you need," Kitty said strongly.

"Thanks," Jubilee said as she dried the tears on her face.

"_Anytime_," Kitty said.

"Seriously," Rogue added.

"Okay," Jubilee nodded. The three of them just sat there for a minute.

"And hm- I'm sorry about being a bitch to you before," Rogue said. "I was going through some shit and I took it out on you. It's not a good excuse. I'm just sorry," Rogue said.

"I did the same thing to you," Jubilee shrugged. "Sorry," she added.

"It's okay," Rogue said. "Guess we're even," she added. Jubilee let out a short laugh at that.

"What were you going through?" Jubilee asked.

"You sure you wanna hear about my problems?" Rogue asked. "I think you got _more_ than enough stuff ta deal with right now," she said. Truth be told she didn't want to repeat it all again. Most of the others understood that by now, but she couldn't expect Jubilee to know that.

"I need to stop thinking about it," Jubilee said. Rogue could certainty understand that. "Since the Professor showed up at Ameila's yesterday- I don't know- since I _moved _into Ameila's- …. _everyone's_ lost their parents there. It's just- It _always_ there. _Everyone_ knows. They try to put on this front- just. I don't want everyone to know about my parents, okay," she said.

"Yeah, of course," Kitty exclaimed.

"I'm the only one who used to live there," Rogue started to say. "We only put it together 'cause of that. Just make sure Prof knows that's what you want, if you haven't told him already," she said.

"I told him," Jubilee said.

"You're secret's safe with us," Rogue said.

"Yeah," Kitty said.

"Thanks," Jubilee said with a smile. "So, what were _you_ going through," Jubilee asked again. Rogue let out a sigh.

"Since February, I was being blackmailed by Magneto," Rogue said.

"Blackmailed?" Jubilee asked her eyes widened.

"Yeah," Rogue said.

"Do you remember that day, outside of the bathroom?" Jubilee asked.

"Yeah, I remember," Rogue sighed.

"... What was that thing on your arm?" she asked cautiously.

"It was a metal ring," Rogue answered dryly.

"A what?" Kitty asked alarmed.

"Magneto was in the bathroom, wasn't he?" Jubilee asked.

"Yeah," Rogue said.

"Oh my god," Kitty exclaimed. "Rogue I-" Kitty started to say.

"It was a while ago and I'm fine. It's not a big deal anymore," Rogue said.

"...I would have yelled at me too," Jubilee said. Despite herself, Rogue smiled.

"I _am_ sorry about that," Rogue said. Jubilee shrugged.

"Me too," Jubilee said. "When did Magneto stop blackmailing you?" she asked. "I'm guessing he stopped, right? You wouldn't be able to talk about it if he hadn't," she said.

"It was a couple of weeks ago," Rogue answered.

"How'd you get him to stop?" Jubilee asked.

"It's a long ass fucking story," Rogue said.

"I got time," Jubilee said. Rogue let out a sigh.

"A lot happened. I don't really wanna relive all of it. I'm sure you can understand that," she said. Jubilee's eyes widened for a moment.

"Hmm- yeah, of course," Jubilee said quickly. "I just- I don't know. Sorry for asking," she said as she avoided eye contact.

"Hey, hey, you got nothing to be sorry about," Rogue said quickly. "There's nothing wrong with asking," she said.

"I think I'd bite your head off if you asked me about my parents," Jubilee said.

"It's fine- I- I'll give you the cliff notes version," she said before sighing. "Max was blackmailing me and some where along the way he fell in love with me," Rogue said.

"Isn't he like really old?" Jubilee started to ask.

"Yeah," Kitty answered meekly. "We're trying like, _not_ to dwell on that," Kitty said.

"Oh- sorr-," she started to say.

"It's fine," Rogue said quickly. "Max also really wanted to recruit me," Rogue said. "Only way he could get me to say yes to him about pretty much anything was by having my trust. He worked really hard to regain my trust. And then something really fucked up happened to me again cause I was his captive and he was sorry about it. He didn't want to hurt me. He wanted to be with me. And well, I really wanna be with him too" Rogue smiled. "So, part of his apology was a truce with the X-Men and the promise that he would never hold me against my will again," she said.

"Wow," Jubilee said.

"Yeah," Kitty muttered.

"But what if he stops wanting your trust?" Jubilee asked.

"Then, I'll deal with it. But I don't think that's gonna happen anytime soon. We're really happy right now," she said.

"That's good," Jubilee said.

"Yeah," Rogue said with a smile. "Yeah, it is," she said. "Just wondering, what were you going through before back when we were both being bitches to each other," Rogue said with a slight smile.

"Huh?" Jubilee asked confused.

"You said you did the same thing to me. Took your anger about other things out on me. What was it?" she asked.

"I said that?" Jubilee asked herself. "Right, I did said that-" she muttered nervously. Rogue raised an eyebrow. "Oh- you know, it was just stupid school stuff," Jubilee answered quickly. Rogue studied her for a moment: there was fear in her eyes.

_'Why is she afrai?'_ Rogue asked herself as Kitty asked "What kind of school stuff?"

Jubilee's eyes continued to widen in fear.

"I should start making breakfast," Rogue said as she stood up, changing the subject.

"Oh, yeah," Kitty exclaimed as Jubilee let out a small sigh in relief. "We were _totally_ suppose to do that already," Kitty laughed. "I'll-" Kitty started to say.

"How about you get Jubilee filled in on everything else that's happened around here for the last month and I'll cook?" Rogue asked.

"Hmm- you sure?" Kitty asked.

"Yup," Rogue said as she headed over to the counter. "Jubilee, does that sound okay to you?" she asked.

"Yeah, it does. I just want to run to the bathroom first," Jubilee said.

"Go right ahead, we ain't going anywhere," Rogue said.

"Thanks," Jubilee said as she stood up. She quickly exited the room.

"That's so sad," Kitty started to say.

"Kitty, how did she look to a minute ago?" Rogue asked as she started to open cabinets and get what she would need to cook.

"What do you mean?" Kitty asked. Rogue turned to face her.

"What about the look in her eye?" Rogue asked.

"They looked like her eyes," Kitty said.

_'I saw it as well, Anna,_' the fragment of Max said. '_The girl was frightened. She did not wish to answer that question.'_

"Never mind," she said out loud to Kitty with a forced smile. She turned back to face the counter. _'It reminded me of-' _she started to say_._

_'You and your behavior over the past few months?" _he asked.

_'Yeah_,' she said.

_ So, we agree,' _Max said.

_'What do you think?'_ she asked.

_'Call Joanna Cargrill,'_ Max suggested. _'She's been stationed at Amelia's since the night I brought you back to the institute. She should be able to give us more details.' _

"Hey, Kitty?" she asked.

"Yeah," she asked.

"Would you mind going to check on Jubilee? There's no way she's okay and if she needs a shoulder to cry on-" Rogue started to say.

"I'm on it," Kitty said as she stood up.

"Oh, and could you please let everyone know that breakfast will be ready in about forty minutes," Rogue added. Kitty smiled at her before she headed out of the room. Once she was sure Kitty was out of ear-shot she pulled out her cell phone. She quickly dialed Joanna's cell phone number.

"Hi Joanna. It's the commodore. How are you?" she asked quickly.

"I'm fine," Joanna answered bluntly.

"Thank you again for letting us know that Professor Xavier was at Amelia's," she said.

"You're welcome," she said.

"I have a few questions for you. When did Jubilation Lee move into Amelia's?

"February twentieth," she answered.

"What do you know about her parent's deaths?"

"I was told it happened on February thirtieth in Beverly Hills, California. Both of her parents were shot," she answered.

"Did Jubilee ever mention living at the Xavier Institute?" she asked.

"Not to my knowledge. No one in the house seemed to be aware of it," Joanna answered.

"Who brought Jubilee to Amelia's?" she asked.

"Amelia herself."

"How did Amelia find out about Jubilee?" she asked.

"I don't know," she said as she heard Kitty, Jubilee and Kurt's voices.

"Please try to find out," Rogue ordered.

"Yes ma'am," she said.

"Thank you, Joanna," Rogue said before she hung up the phone. She quickly put the phone back in her pocket as she walked over to the refrigerator.

"Good morning, Rogue," she heard Kurt say as she opened the refrigerator door.

"Morning, Kurt," she said with a smile.

"Do you want any help?" he asked as Jubilee and Kitty sat down at the table again.

"Yeah, I would," she said with a smile. "Actually, Kurt, can you take over for just a minute? I gotta go run to the bathroom," she said.

"Yeah, sure," he smiled.

"Thanks, little brother," she said before she headed out of the room.

_'I believe, we both know what question needs to be asked next,'_ the fragment of Magneto said.

_'Yeah, yeah we both do,'_ Rogue thought as she pulled out her cell phone again and dialed Pietro's number.

* * *

"But Charles, why didn't Jubilee call us after they passed? She had a home here, with people who knew and cared about her. She didn't need to go to an orphanage Why didn't _anyon__e_ call us?" Ororo asked. Charles sat with his staff, Ororo, Hank, and Logan in sub-level seven. He had just filled them in on what he had learned yesterday about Jubilee's parents and her short stay at Amelia's home for Wayward Children.

"I have no idea," he said baffled. "Amelia didn't know that she had lived here. Apparently, no one did. What I do know is the poor girl was very unhappy at Amelia's. She told us on the ride back here that her stay there was a constant reminder that her parents were gone. She felt alone regardless of how many people were around her. Amelia told us that Jubilee hadn't really _connected with anyone while there," he said._

"But they just _let_ you take her?" Logan asked in disbelief.

"That home was extremely overcrowded," Hank said. "Sean looked almost relieved when we gave Jubilee the choice of coming back with us," he said.

"Amelia is also going to be coming up in a week to visit Jubilee and check on her," Charles said. "Being surrounded by friends can only help Jubilee," Charles added. "But she doesn't want anyone to know about her loss," he said.

"Why?" Ororo asked.

"I believe she just wants to feel normal again. Like she did before she lost them. We'll let Jubilee tell the others at _her_ digression and take this situation one day at a time," Charles said.

* * *

I'm kind of liking these shorter chapters. I used to have this 4000 word rule for myself before I could post a chapter. Although, that rule did help me write a lot of great stuff and made sure I reread my work enough times before posting. I think, with my current crazy work schedule shorter chapters are just the way I'm going to have to go for this year. Thank you so much to everyone who showed their support!

I hoped you all enjoyed this! Please review!?


	64. Chapter 63

Okay, so you guys are going to have a reaction to something that happens in this chapter! Please please please write that reaction in a review!? Thank you again for all the support! And...

Please enjoy,

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Sixty-Three.

Sunday night Charles watched his students and staff sitting around the table eating dinner. Jubilee's return had gone over well. Everyone had been overjoyed to see her and the girl had meshed back into life at the institute in less than a day, which he was glad for. His students needed the good news. He only wished Jubilee hadn't been brought back to them under such unfortunate circumstances.

He raised an eyebrow as he felt the presents of someone entering the grounds, a mind too fast to for him to track. It was then a cell phone rung.

"Excuse me," Rogue said as she stood up, taking her cell phone out of her pocket.

_'Rogue?'_ Charles asked with a raised eyebrow as she answered her cell phone. _'Why is Pietro here?'_

"Hold on a second, Joanna," Rogue said into the phone._ 'Pietro's right outside?'_ she asked.

"Yes, he is," Charles answered.

'_He's just dropping something off for me,_' she said.

_'From Magneto?'_ Charles asked.

"No, I asked him to get this for me. Give me three minutes, Prof and I'll explain, I promise," Rogue said as she rushed out of the room. "Sorry about that Joanna. What did you find out?" he could hear her ask from outside in the hall. He exchanged looks with his staff.

"Who's Joanna?" Hank asked. Charles let out a sigh as he cut into his chicken cutlet.

"One of Magneto's people?" Ororo asked.

"Most likely," Charles agreed.

"And she giving them orders now?" Hank asked.

"Kid's using the resources Magneto's given her. She's already told us that," Logan reminded them.

"Let's give Rogue the three minutes she asked for," Charles said. _'So much for this being a quiet night,'_ Charles thought to himself.

* * *

_'Prof?' _he heard Rogue call out to him a few minutes later.

_'Yes?'_ he asked.

_'Do you wanna hear this now, or wait till after dinner?'_ Rogue asked him.

_'It's important, I take it?_' he asked as he took one last bite of food.

_'Yeah it is,'_ Rogue answered.

_'What is this about?'_ he asked.

_'Jubilee,'_ Rogue answered. He raised an eyebrow at her response.

_'I will meet you in sub-level seven,'_ Charles said as he put down his fork and knife

_'Okay,'_ Rogue said.

"Please, excuse me," Charles said out loud as he started to back away from the table.

"Charles? What is it?" Oroo asked.

"I'm not certain, yet. I'll keep you all informed," he said before he made his way out of the room.

* * *

Charles glanced up to see Rogue sitting in one of the chairs as he entered sub-level seven. She had two pieces of paper, folded in half in her hands.

"_Rogue?"_ he asked, calling for her attention. Her eyes refocused on him.

"_Hey,_" she said as he moved to sit in front of her.

"_What's going on?_" he asked.

_'Brace yourself,'_ she said as she took a deep breath. '_I have a contact at Amelia Vought's who found out that Ameilia only found out about Jubilee through an old friend. A_ telepath_ named Agatha. My source doesn't know the telepath's last name,' _she told him.

"_How did you even know Jubilee was at Amelia?" _Charles asked confounded.

"_I just told you. I have a source. She called us yesterday,"_ Rogue said.

"_You and Magneto?"_ he asked: his didn't manage to keep the disdain out of his voice.

"_Yeah, obviously,"_ Rogue answered in a huff as she unfolded the pieces of papers. _"And then there's _this_,"_ she told him as she handed him the pieces of the paper. They were Jubilee's parents death certificates. His eyes widened in shock.

"_Rogue, why did you get these?_" he asked appalled as he looked up at her.

"_Because look at the date,"_ Rogue said insistently as she pointed to the date of death on the certificate. His eyes widened in shock: it read May 28th 2001.

''My god," he muttered before he stop himself as he glanced at both certificates. Jubilee's parents had been murdered months before she had moved into the institute last year. He glanced back up at Rogue.

"_So, she's either being _blackmailed or works_ for Irene and Agatha. How do you wanna handle this?_" Rogue asked. He took a deep breath as he regained composure of himself.

"_I'll- I'll talk to Jubilee myself and get to the bottom of this,"_ he said.

"_Okay,"_ Rogue said.

"_Please do not say_ anything_ to her,"_ Charles stressed: Rogue eye's narrowed at the comment.

"I wasn't going to," Rogue said, her tone slightly annoyed._ "Would I have come to you_ first_ if I was going to?"_ she asked irritated.

"_Why did you even start looking into this?"_ Charles asked confused.

"_Jubilee and me talked earlier. Both of us were apologizing to the other,_" Rogue explained.

"_What for?"_ he asked.

"_We were both being bitches to each other before the institute was destroyed. I kinda took out some of my anger with Magneto on her. She just shrugged it off: said she did the same thing to me,"_ she said. Charles raised an eyebrow at that.

"_Who was she anger with?"_ Charles asked.

"_She didn't say. She got real scared, tensed up, tried to change the subject. Reminded me of my reactions to some very dangerous conversations I've had with you in the past. Made me ask a few questions,"_ Rogue said. _"And then I found all this,"_ she finished explaining gesturing to the papers in his hands.

"_Are you certain these are genuine?"_ Charles asked.

"_I had Pietro steal them from the states records in California. You sensed his mind when he got here. It was him, right?"_ she asked.

"_Yes, it was most certainly Quicksliver,"_ Charles answered.

"_Then they're real,"_ Rogue said. "_Unless someone replaced them before Pietro got there. Irene could've pulled that off. But why would she? If anything, wouldn't they be trying to _hide_ the fact that they've been using Jubilee?_" she asked.

"_I agree. That wouldn't make much sense. But then the question becomes, where was Jubilee between May twenty-eighth and August twenty-second?"_ he asked mostly to himself

"_I've never absorbed Jubilee. I have no idea,"_ Rogue answered regardless.

"_Nor do I want you to,"_ Charles said quickly.

"_I wasn't planning to," _she said annoyed. _"I got enough people up here already,"_ she said as she pointed to her head._ "I haven't had a nightmare in over a month. I wanna keep it that way. I ain't absorbing anyone new unless I don't have any other choice,"_ Rogue told him.

"_That's most likely for the best,"_ Charles agreed. Rogue nodded. "_Rogue, thank you very much for bring this to my attention,"_ Charles said earnestly.

"Your welcome," Rogue said as she stood up._ "Prof, I just-"_ she started to say before sighing._ "I wish I had been wrong. If ya need my help, you know where to find me,"_ Rogue said as she headed to the door.

"_Yes, I do,"_ Charles said. She gave him a sad smile as he watched her leave the room. Charles let out a sigh as he projected a thought:_ 'Hank, Logan, Ororo, meet me in sub-level seven.'_

* * *

The doors to the lift opened for Rogue. She exited the lift as she saw Jubilee heading towards her.

"Hey," Jubilee said.

"Hi," Rogue said.

"Hmm, which floor are the gyms on?" Jubilee asked as Rogue turned to look at her. "I haven't been there yet," Jubilee said meeky.

"Come on, I'll show ya," Rogue said with a smile as she headed back towards the lift with Jubilee.

"Thanks," Jubilee smiled.

"Yeah, it's no problem," Rogue said as they entered the lift. Rogue pressed the button for sub level eight: she noticed Jubilee watching her movements. "You got any questions about where anything else is?" Rogue asked.

"Nope, just that," Jubilee said as the lift started to move. "I'll figure out the rest when I need too," she said.

"Alrig-" Rogue started to say before the lights flickered in the elevator. "I guess someone needs ta change th-" Rogue started to say before the lights continued to flicker, faster. on and off. Rogue moved up to the control, but the elevator stopped abruptly: causing her and Jubilee to lose there footing.

"Whoa," Jubilee exclaimed as they two of them grabbed onto each others arms to regain their footing. It was then the elevator started to ascend dangerously fast. "Ahh," Jubilee screamed as they both fell to the floor of the elevator. Rogue lost hold of Jubilee's arm as she turned towards the controls.

'_Prof,'_ Rogue yelled out in her mind as she reached for the emergency stop button. '_Jean,' _she screamed out as she was tossed to the floor again, banging into Jubilee. _ 'Professor,'_ she screamed out again as the lights turned off completely: it was pitch black. Impossible to see anything as the elevator reversed direction, now falling far faster than the lift was meant to. Rogue felt herself, lifted into the air by the force of the lift's movements.

"Ahhh," Jubilee cried out. "Rogue," she called out as she the other girl's hand brushed against her.

"Jubilee," she screamed as they hit the top of the elevator. Both of them let out a groan in pain. Jubilee let out another scream as Rogue managed to grab Jubilee's hand.

"Professor," Rogue screamed out as they started to fall again, the elevator again switching directions. Rogue felt a hand on her shoulder as they fell. To her surprise they landed on something soft. '_What?'_ she asked as tried to lift her. The whip lash from being tossed around was still wearing off.

"No," she heard Jubilee whisper. "Not here," she muttered panicked. Rogue finally lift her head to see they were in a bedroom.

"What the fuck?" Rogue muttered in disbelief as she fought to catch her breath. The only light in the room was coming from the moonlight from the window. She still recognized it. They were in her bedroom in Mississippi, in the house she lived in with Irene for all those years. "Why are we he-?" she started to ask. "Not here-" she repeated Jubilee's works to herself as she turned to face Jubilee: who was still on the bed beside her. "You've been here before?" Rogue asked in shock before Jubilee started to hyperventilate. Rogue put her hands on Jubilee's shoulders, rubbing softly. "You gotta breath, deep breaths-" she coached.

"W-why are w-we h-here?" Jubilee cried

"I have no fucking idea," Rogue answered quickly. "But you gotta breath. This isn't gonna help anyone. Deep breaths," Rogue said as she took her own advise. "Okay?" she asked. "Breath with me," she ordered gently: trying to keep her own fear in check.

"Rogue," Jubilee cried as she leaned her head against Rogue's chest.

"I know, sugar. I'm scared too," Rogue said as she hugged her. "Fuck," she muttered as she felt her bare skin brush against Jubilee's. Her eyes widened as she realized she didn't absorb her. "Fuck," she muttered again. "Jubilee, can you use your powers?" she asked.

"I never have powers here," Jubilee cried into her chest. Rogue's eyes widened in shock as she started to hyperventilate, herself.

"Fuck, fuck, fuck..." Rogue muttered to herself as she fought to overcome her fear. _'You can handle this,' _she thought as she fought to regain control of her breathing._ 'You_ have_ to handle this. Jubilee's two years younger than you,' _she told herself. _'You gotta hold it together for her. You gotta be the one to take charge here,'_ she told herself as she took deep breaths.

It took a few minutes but she managed to get her breathing back to normal. Jubilee was still not handling the situation well. She was still crying against her chest.

"Everything's gonna be okay, sugar," Rogue muttered. "I don't know how yet," she added. "But it's gonna," she said as she reached into her pocket. "Fuck," she exclaimed as she realized her cell phone was gone._ 'Course, it's gone,'_ she thought to herself.

"Rogue?" she asked as Jubilee pulled back from her.

"Yeah, sugar?" she asked.

"Do you know why we're here?" she asked.

"I think it might be cause I figured out they've been blackmailing you," Rogue said. "But I don't know for sure," she said as she stood up. She walked over to her bedroom door and kicked it as hard as she could.

"I've tried all of that before," Jubilee said. Rogue turned to look at her. "It won't open unless _they_ want it to," she said. Rogue let out a sigh as she walked over to the window.

"God damn it," she exclaimed as she saw the window was nailed shut. Rogue walked over to her dresser and pulled out a shirt. She wrapped the shirt around her hand. Just as she was about to punch the window- planning to break the glass- a brick layer appeared over the window. "Fuck," she exclaimed as she threw the shirt to the floor.

"I told you. I've tried _everything_," Jubilee said. Rogue took a deep breath.

_'Okay, fuck- … Okay,'_ she thought before she walked back over to the bed. She turned on the lamp on the nightstand beside her bed. "How long did they keep you here?" Rogue asked as she sat down beside Jubilee.

"I don't- I don't know if I should answer that," Jubilee said.

"I know this woman, Irene," Rogue said as her handed balled by her side. "If they didn't want us to talk they wouldn't have given us time to," Rogue said. "I've been where you are right now. Fuck- I-_ I am_ where you are right now. I've had such a huge secret, I didn't even know how to handle it."

"The worst part throughout all of it was-" Rogue started to say. "_Is_," she corrected herself, "having to pretend that I'm okay, that I ain't in any danger," Rogue said. "Trying to pretend I'm _happy_ like everyone else. It's easier, when I actually have control over where I am," she said bitterly, "to keep myself _isolated_. The more time I have away from everyone else is one more second I could let my guard down and just let myself feel how fucked up it all is. I'm fighting to keep myself sane when all I wanted to do is-"

"Scream and cry," Jubilee finished angry. "You just wonder why?" Jubilee asked. There were tears all over her face, more flowing freely from her eyes. "Why is all of this is happening to you when everyone else has no idea what your going through? Nothings okay and you feel like nothing is ever going to be okay again. _Ever_. And all you want to do is scream because there gone. _Both of them," _she yelled, her voice cracking. Rogue felt tears form in her own eyes. "I will never get to see my parents again, ever," she screamed. "And then they took me and-" she started to say before she cried out again. "I couldn't talk to anyone about it. I had to be happy and carefree," she said bitterly as Rogue cried silence tears.

"But you don't scream and you only cry when no one else is looking," Rogue said. "And you just wanna to have one honest conversation with," Rogue started to say.

"With someone _besides_ the people threatening you," Jubilee cried. Rogue nodded.

"I know. I know," Rogue said as placed her hand on Jubilee's shoulder. "I cried joy of tears first time I talked to Prof about it. It was so nice to just have the fucking option but now. Fuck- I- I just want the past to fucking die so it can just stop hurting already," she said.

"When they moved me to Amelia's," Jubilee started to say. "I thought it would be so nice to be able to talk about it. But everyone else lost their parents too and no one really wanted to talk. And I just- I still couldn't talk about what I really wanted to. I have all this pain and all this- Rogue, I'm scared _all the time_. They never said they were done with me. They could- they took me again-" she cried. "I can't handle this anymore," Jubilee exclaimed.

"Shh," Rogue hushed as she rubbed the girl back. Jubilee leaned her head against Rogue's chest again, crying. "You can talk about it, right now, if you wanna?" Rogue asked. "I'll listen," she said. Jubilee lifted herself off of Rogue chest a minute later.

"A month," Jubilee answered softly. "They kept me here for about a month," she said.

"Did they bring you here right after you lost them?" Rogue asked.

"No," Jubilee answered. "There was this mall," Jubilee said as a smile graced her face: through the tears. "I used to hang out there all the time with my friends. When they- when they died, I was taken to this orphanage, not Amelia's," she added quickly. "This place was- I just- I couldn't stand it there," she exclaimed. "I ran away and I was living in my mall for about two months," she said.

"How did you get by?" Rogue asked.

"I used to dumper drive, steal food off of people plates. I used to drive this security guard up a wall-" she laughed sadly. Rogue chuckled softly despite herself. Jubilee smiled at her. "But then I got my powers," she smiled. "I started putting on small light shows in the mall. I had a this little cup and people just started _giving_ me money," she said happily. "When I could buy my own food- it was- it was the best hot dog I had _ever_ eaten," Jubilee said with a laugh: Rogue laughed with her.

"I sorry you had to go through all that alone," Rogue said.

"It's okay I- You didn't even know me yet. I really miss my mall- my life. It was hard- but- I'd rather be there. I tried running away from Amelia's once. Miss. Harkness showed up. Said- she said I was supposed to be there. That I couldn't leave. Not until Professor Xavier gave me a choice," she said.

"And that was yesterday," Rogue finished.

"Yeah," Jubilee said with a nod. "Rogue, what are we gonna do?" she asked. As if on cue, the bedroom door started to open. Standing in the door way was Agatha Harkness.

"Irene would like to speak with you both," Agatha said. They looked at each other, both of them knew this was not a request. Jubilee wiped the tears off her face. "Now," Agatha added firmly: Jubilee flinched as Rogue stood up. Jubilee stood up next. She and Rogue linked hands as the turned to face Agatha. "Follow me," Agatha order as she turned away from them. Rogue took a deep breath before she led Jubilee out of the room.

* * *

So, yeah it's been less than a week since I updated. Get used to it! At least for the next five months!

You already took the time to read it. You might as well take a minute to tell me if I did a good job or not! Please review!

Speaking of which:

Angelpaint07 and Marigab: Thank you both for reviewing last chapter! So, that's what happened to Jubilee. I'm sure you both noticed how she didn't even really talk about what happened to her while she was Irene and Agatha's captive, but we'll get there! I hope you both enjoyed it and please let me know what you thought! :)


	65. Chapter 64

Please enjoy,

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Sixty-Four.

Rogue took a deep breath as she followed Agatha down the dimly lite hallway, stairs and into the living room. Jubilee held onto her hand tightly as they walked. They were both terrified. Irene was seated, as she usually was, in her favorite chair.: a large green cushioned arm chair. As through nothing had changed. As though she still lived there, with who she thought was a loving mother. Rogue took a deep breath as they found themselves standing in front of Irene. If only Agatha wasn't there- the beating she would give to Irene.

"Girls, have a seat," Irene said calmly as she gestured to couch. Jubilee's hand left hers as she took a seat. Rogue guessed Jubilee was more used to taking Irene's orders. Who knows what they did to her, that long month she was held captive within these walls. The thought of it, made Rogue's blood boil.

Rogue took a deep breath as she tried to keep her anger in check. All she wanted to do was throw herself at the women, make her hurt.

"I know, honey," Irene said. "But we're not here to fight. We're here to talk," she said as Agatha took a seat in the other large green cushioned arm chair that was a few feet away from Irene's.

"So, talk," Rogue said as she sat down. Jubilee, she noticed was trembling slightly, the whole couch shook slightly because of it. Rogue took a hold of Jubilee's hand again: making eye contact again, she smiled. She watched Jubilee take a deep breath. Her gestured helped to keep Jubilee's emotions in check, but she still needed to get them both out of this house as quickly as possible. "What do you want?" Rogue asked: her voice dipping with disdain.

"I have two conditions. If you agree to them both you will be returned to Xavier's within the hour," Irene said.

"_Both_ me and Jubilee will be returned to our home?" Rogue asked. "I ain't agreeing to anything unless both of our releases are on the table," Rogue said.

"Yes, both of you will be return to Xavier's," Irene answered.

"So, what the fuck are your conditions?" Rogue asked. She felt Jubilee wince next to her.

"None of that, Rogue. I raised you better than that," Irene said firmly. Rogue's eye narrowed in anger. "I removed Victor from your life for a reason. So, you wouldn't inherit his tongue," Irene said. It was taking every bit of will power Rogue had not to leap off of the couch and attack Irene. "No one will take you seriously if you keep using that type of language, dear. Not everyone you negotiate with will be as _understanding_ of your vile outbursts as Magneto was," she said.

"Enough people take me seriously," Rogue said through her teeth as her hands balled at her sides.

"No, they don't, Rogue. Not yet," Irene said. "It's one of the reasons Charles Xavier can't treat you with the respect your actions have earned you. Until you stop acting like one, he will continue to see you as a petulant child in over her head and we can't have that," Irene said.

"Why exactly can't we have that?" Rogue asked mockingly.

"Agatha?" Irene asked. "If you would please help me make this point," Irene said.

"Wh-" Rogue started to ask before Jubilee let out a scream in panic.

"Jubilee," Rogue yelled out concerned: out of the corner of her eye she could see Jubilee's arm shoot out and twist in an unnatural manner. "Oh my god," Rogue said as tears started to form in her eyes as Jubilee cried out in pain as her arm was twisted. Rogue's eyes met Jubilee's. She was so scared. "I'm sorry-" Rogue yelled out quickly: swallowing her pride. "Irene, I apologize for my tone. _Please_ don't hurt her," Rogue begged.

"Thank you, Agatha," Irene said. To Rogue's relief Jubilee's arm dropped to her side. Jubilee met her eyes again.

"Thank you," Jubilee whispered, her voice barely audible.

"'Course," Rogue muttered. "I wasn't gonna be the cause of that," Rogue uttered, trying to calm herself down. She closed her eyes for a moment as she took a deep breath.

"Will we have go through that again?" Irene asked.

"...No," Rogue said: shocked, afraid and anger. "We won't have to do that again. Please just tell me what it is you want from me," Rogue said.

"You will stop taking measures to hide your conversations from me. I have a plans for you, for mutant kind. I need to know that events are happening as I need them too. I need to know that your _skills_ are developing at the rate I believe they are. If you fail to comply with this request then I will have to assess your progress for myself, in _person,_" Irene asked as Rogue's eyes widened.

"Most likely on a weekly basis. Perhaps daily," Irene threatened. "How often we see each other will depend on how difficult you plan on being. I'm certain the last thing you want is to be abducted frequently," Irene said. Rogue took a deep breath. "If I'm unsatisfied, you'll know," Irene said darkly. Rogue took a deep breath.

"What's your other condition, Irene?" Rogue asked.

"You're currently enrolled in French class. But you've been fluent in the language since you were seven. I saw to that early on. I'd like you to transfer into a Spanish class and start your exposure to that language. Also, in this bag," Irene said gesturing to black back-pack on the floor beside her chair. "I have study material for you to learn Russian and Mandarin. Magneto can assist you in your practical application of speaking Russian. Jubilee can assist with Mandarin. I would like you to be fluent in both Russian and Mandarin by June seventh," Irene said.

"Two months?" Jubilee asked in disbelief. "That's impossible," she muttered.

"Not for Rogue. She nearly mastered German in one month, while studying the language was a side project. All she will need to do is apply herself," Irene said before she stood up.

"I can hold a conversation with Magneto but I haven't nearly mastered the language. I'm not fluent in German," Rogue said.

"Yet. That's why I'm providing you with the tools you'll need to learn at a fast pace. Study every day and you should be fine," Irene said. "But, I should warn you, if the deadline comes up and I find you haven't applied yourself, Rogue, Jubilee will pay for your lack of effort with her life," Irene said as she walked across the room. Rogue heard Jubilee let out a gasp in shock and fear. Rogue took Jubilee's hand in her own again. Rogue squeezed her hand reassuringly as she turned to look at her.

"Can I get either of you girls some sweat tea?" Irene asked. Rogue's eye narrowed in anger.

"How can-" Rogue started to scream: as Agatha moved forward in her seat. Rogue stopped herself and took a deep breath. "No, I wouldn't like anything to drink," Rogue said: she couldn't keep the contempt out of her voice. She didn't want anything from that women.

"Agatha?" Irene asked.

"No, thank you, Irene," Agatha said before Irene left the room

"You're gonna be fine, Jubilee. I promise, I'll learn the languages," Rogue said. Jubilee leaned her head against Rogue's chest again. She put her arm around the other girl and held her as Jubilee cried softly. "It's gonna be okay. Now, I know how. I ain't gonna let you down," Rogue whispered as she rubbed Jubilee's shoulder reassuringly.

"Thank you," Jubilee whispered meekly.

"'Course, sugar. Have can I do anything else?" she asked as she glanced up at Agatha, making eye contact with the woman. "I don't understand what you're gaining out of all of this," Rogue said. "Why are you helping her?" Rogue asked.

"My motives are none of your business, child," Agatha said as Irene returned to the room.

"Irene, how can you claim you're motivated to help mutant kind, while you're willing to threaten her life?" Rogue asked in disbelief.

"Larger picture, dear," Irene answered as she returned to the room with a glass of sweat-tea for herself. "Jubilee's life is not as important as the development of your skills," Irene said as she sat back down. Jubilee let out a soft cry. Rogue hugged the girl tightly against her.

"You can't actually believe that," Rogue muttered.

"You have a destiny. You are meant for greater things then the mall rat who's future is of no consequence. I speak the truth, whether or not you're willing to admit it," Irene said before she took another sip of her drink.

"Every life is-" Rogue started to say.

"I know what you're trying to do, Rogue," Irene said. "You want to start an ideological discussion. Wear down my motivations still you've either learned what it is I'm going to do, or managed to convince me to change my mind," Irene said. "I will _only_ say this one more time: I am _not_ Magneto. The means you used to subdue him with not work with me. When the time comes you _will_ do what I have foreseen. There will be no argument, no resistance, and no complaints," Irene said firmly. Rogue took a deep breath.

"Can I assume you've threatened Jubilee into silence?" Rogue asked.

"Yes," Irene said.

"Can you lift that threat?" she asked. Irene turned her head away from Rogue's for a moment, Rogue knew this meant she was deep in thought. She had seen this look her Irene's face so many times in the past.

"She may only speak with you about her ordeal and only in Mandarin," Irene answered a few moments later. "Is that understood, Jubilation?" Irene asked.

"Yes, Miss. Alder," Jubilee whispered.

"...I agree to your terms, because we both know I don't have a choic-" Rogue started to say.

"You're also going to stop that," Irene said firmly. "You could be willing to spend more time with me or you could allow Jubilee to die. You're choosing not to. That's your choice, Rogue. Yours to make. You're going to have to make_ many_ difficult decisions in the future. You don't have time for self-delusions. Is that clear?" Irene asked.

"...Yeah-" Rogue started to say.

"Yes," Irene corrected. Rogue took another deep breath.

_'Think of Jubilee,'_ she told herself as she fought to remain calm. "Yes, you've made your points very clear. I choose to agree to your terms. Can we _please_ go home, now?" Rogue asked. Irene took another sip of her drink.

"Agatha, please bring them home," Irene said.

* * *

Rogue quickly moved out from Agatha's hand as they appeared before the institute. Rogue had the backpack in her over shoulder.

"Do not bother trying to locate us in the future, Rogue," Agatha said as she handed Rogue her cellphone. "You will not be able to find us until we come looking for you," Agatha said before she disappeared.

Once Agatha was gone, Rogue dropped the backpack to the ground and walked a few feet away from Jubilee.

"Rogue?" Jubilee asked.

"Give me a minute, sugar, and then I'll go explain things to Prof. I'll make sure he leaves you alone, doesn't start asking you a bunch of questions you can't answer. But just give me a minute," Rogue said.

"Take all the time you need," Jubilee said softly as she took a seat on the ground. Rogue walked a few more feet away from Jubilee. It was cold out, but she didn't care. Couldn't even feel it the chill against her skin as she walked further out.. Her hands were balled at her sides. All she was seeing was red as tears started to fall down her face. Rogue's breath started to hyperventilate: coming fast, making it difficult to breath. She allowed her knees to buckle beneath her as she fell to the ground. Her hands shook, her whole body shook with rage.

Finally Rogue let out a scream.

"I used to love her," Rogue screamed through her hyperventilating. "She was-" she screamed as she leaned forward, her forehead touching the ground in front of her. "I used to love you," she screamed out: knowing that Irene was watching. She let out another scream until her voice gave out to a small whimper. "You were the only constant person in my life," she whispered. "Because you never allowed anyone else to do that," she whispered in disbelief. It felt like her heart was breaking.

"You took so many people way from me, so many families," Rogue cried. "So- so... So, you could have me all to yourself," she cried: tears falling freely onto the ground a few inches away from her face. "So, you could-" she started to say.

Rogue lifted her head up and glanced up at the night's sky. "What do you want from me?" she screamed. "What? What is this all leading up to?" Rogue screamed. Of course, there was no response. "Irene," she screamed.

"You didn't-" Rogue started to whisper. "You didn't need to threaten her life, for me to learn a couple of god damn languages," she yelled out. "I would have- if you would just_ tell me_ why it's important. Why I need to know them-" she struggled to say as she hyperventilated. "What?" she screamed out again. "What are you preparing me for?" Rogue asked again. Rogue flinched as she felt a hand on her arm. She quickly turned her head to see Kitty standing next to her, tears running down her room mates face. She turned to look at Jubilee. Jean was now sitting next to her, her arm around Jubilee as she continued to cry.

"We saw you both on the camera, when we were cleaning up from dinner," Kitty explained as she pulled Rogue into a hug. "I don't know, like, what's going on, but I'm here for you," Kitty said as she hugged her tightly. "I love you, Rogue," Kitty said as Rogue returned the hug. Rogue leaned her head against her chest as she let herself go completely and succumbed to weeping.

* * *

Rogue pulled back from Kitty as she took a deep breath.

"So, what's going on?" Jean asked gently.

"Wǒ bù xīwàng sǐ," Jubilee said quietly.

"Jubilee, give me, like, a week and I'll understand what you're saying well enough so we can talk," Rogue promised. Jubilee glanced up at her.

"Xièxiè," Jubilee said with a sad smile.

"Was that thank you?" Rogue asked. Jubilee nodded. " Xièxiè," Rogue repeated to herself. "How do you say you're welcome?" Rogue asked.

"Bù kèqì," Jubilee said.

"Bù kèqì," Rogue repeated. "You're going to be okay. As soon as I'm done talking to Prof. I'm gonna spend the rest of the night studying," Rogue said.

"Xièxiè," Jubilee repeated.

"The Professor's waiting for us in sub-level seven," Jean said. "I told him we were out here when he started to look for Jubilee about ten minutes ago," she explained.

"Okay," Rogue said after she took a deep breath. "How's your arm?" Rogue asked Jubilee.

"I'm fine," Jubilee said as she and Jean stood up.

"You sure?" Rogue asked.

"Yeah," Jubilee said.

"Alright, let's go get this over with," Rogue said.

* * *

Charles sat with his staff in sub-level seven. He had been attempting to keep his anger in check since he had heard that Jubilee and Rogue were outside. From Jean had told him, it was clear that Rogue had talked to Jubilee.

"She must have had a good reason," Ororo said: sticking up for Rogue.

"We'll see," Charles said. A moment later Rogue and Jubilee entered the room with Jean and Kitty. _'Rogue?' _he asked: his tone angry. Rogue's eyes narrowed in anger.

"Can I explain first?" Rogue asked annoyed.

"You promised me less than an hour ago that you would not talk-" Charles started to say.

"Irene and Agatha just kidnapped us," Rogue yelled, cutting him off. Charles eyes widened as a chorus of gasps echoed throughout the room.

"What?" Charles asked in shock.

"We_ talked_ about Irene and Agatha because we were _with_ them," Rogue said strongly. "Have I done _anything_ to make you believe that I'm untrustworthy? Really?" Rogue asked annoyed.

"Rogue I-" Charles started to say.

"Whatever," Rogue said as she sat down. "I don't wanna argue with you anymore than you wanna argue with me. It's officially been a long day. And I just wanna get this conversation over with so I can attempt to stop thinking about it and work towards making sure Irene doesn't hurt Jubilee. So, I'm gonna tell you what happened. What Irene wants from me right now. Why I'm_ absolutely_ going to do what she's demanded and why you _cannot_ ask Jubilee questions about what they did to her the month they held her captive," Rogue said.

"Yes, of course," Charles said.

"Okay," Rogue said. "And then I'm gonna go spend the night at Max's," Rogue said quickly.

"Rogue," Charles to object.

"I'm not asking, Prof. That's what I'm doing," she said strongly. He opened his mouth to speak. "We were just abducted out of the elevator we all use _daily," _she yelled at him_._"I am fuc-" she started to say before she stopped herself. "I am _terrified_ right now with every fiber of my being. My body is_ literally_ shaking with rage and fear," she said. It was true she was shaking her seat slightly. So was Jubilee he noticed.

"I can _barely_ keep myself composed. I feel _safe_ with Max and right now that's what I need to feel more than anything. I need to you _accept_ that and allow me to do what I _need_ to do to get through this night," Rogue finished strongly.

"I know that just thinking about Irene can bring you to tears. I can only imagine how much seeing her in person would effect you," Charles started to say.

"You don't have to imagine. _This_ is the effect seeing her has on me. I'm also gonna explain what Irene and I talked about _despite _the fact that this conversation is _hurting_ me. Every conversation we have right after a traumatic experience _hurts_ me. But I'll deal with it, like I always do, because _I know_ that you need to know what's going on," Rogue said strongly as tears were forming in her eyes.

"Today, Prof, you got _mad_ at me _several _times before you even gave me a chance to explain myself. By now, Prof, I _need_ you to just know that I am _devoted_ to this family, that I fight to keep our people _safe_. I know that you are in charge of the x-men and this family. But you aren't the one with a _target_ on your back anymore. I worked _very hard_ to get you off of Magneto's list of enemies. And Irene seems to more interested in me than anyone else. With Magneto it was always a matter of how much _trauma _he would subject us to or how inconvenience he was going to make our life to suit his own goals. It was _never_ life or death," she said.

"Max decided before anyone in this room, aside from Logan, was born that he would do whatever he needed to do to keep mutants alive and safe. That is one of the _many_ reasons our relationship developed the way it did. Because deep down I knew, my life, _our_ lives, were never in danger. But Irene-" Rogue said, her voice cracking. "I have-" Rogue started to say before she stopped short. Tears rolled down her face. "I have until June seventh to do something. If I do not do it then Irene will have Jubilee _killed for my defiance for her orders," Rogue said. Charles eyes widened in fear._

"My god," Charles muttered.

"I going to do what she asked. I have to," Rogue said through her tears. "But I'm gonna need help," Rogue cried: her body shaking more. "This isn't about what topics make us _uncomfortable_ anymore. Irene has _escalated_ things to a new," she said: clearly struggling to get the words out, "_much_ more dangerous level. Jubilee's _life_ is in _my_ hands. I don't want it to be," she cried, as she continued to hyperventilate. "But it is. And I _need _your help and understanding," she begged. "The next two months I am gonna be working to make sure I do_ exactly_ what Irene's asked. After _everything_ I have done already for this family, to keep us all safe, I need you to _trust me_," Rogue said. "I need you to just know that I know I'm doing the best that I can to appease everyone. Unfortunately-" Rogue started to say.

"What am I saying?" Rogue asked herself with a short laugh through her tears. "_Fortunately_, you are the only one out three people I currently have to answer to, that has _never_ threatened me before. Because of that you kinda get shafted a little when it comes to whose expectations I work to meet. Because if I fail to shape up to the image of behavior that you believe I should adhere to, no one's gonna hurt or abducted, or telepathically enslaved," Rogue exclaimed through her tears. "You have to be last on that list, between you and Irene and Magneto because that's what's going to keep us all living here, as safe as we can be. I _wish_ I knew what this was all leading up to. What it is she wants from me. What it is she wants me to do. I would be willing to- I don't understand," she exclaimed. "It's just learning a couple of languages-" Rogue cried into her hands.

"Rogue, Rogue enough-" Charles said gently. "Please give me your cell phone," he said. She quickly pulled it out of her pocket.

"Who do you wanna-" she started to ask.

"Magneto, of course," he answered. Rogue opened the phone and dialed a number before handing him the phone. "Thank you," he said as he put the phone to his ear.

"Anna?" Magneto asked.

"No, it's Charles," he said into the phone.

"Is that her I hear crying in the background?" Magneto asked concerned.

"Yes, she had another conversation with Irene today, in person this time," Charles explained.

"I'm on my way," he said.

"Bring an overnight bag, Magnus. I doubt you'll leave the institute tonight. Rogue needs your support," Charles said.

"Understood," Magneto said before the line went dead.

"We'll wait till he gets here," Charles explained as gently as he could. "You'll only have to explain it once," he said.

"Thank you," Rogue said earnestly.

"Kitty, could you please go grab a bottle of water?" Charles asked.

"And tissues?" Kitty asked.

"Please," Jubilee asked.

"I believe a few of us could use a tissue," Ororo added. There were tears on her face as well. The only dry face in the room was Logan's.

"Sure," Kitty said as she stood up.

"Rogue, Jubilee," Ororo said as she stood up. "Why don't the two of you join me over there?" Ororo said as she pointed to the far left corner of the room.

"Meditation?" Rogue asked.

"That is what I had in mine," Ororo smiled.

"Okay," Rogue said as she stood up: her body shook violently as she stood. "It actually really does help," Rogue said to Jubilee.

"I'll give it a try," Jubilee shrugged as she stood as well. The three of them walked over to the corner and sat down on the floor. Ororo sat against the wall, in front of the two girls.

_'Professor?'_ Jean thought to him.

_'Yes?_' Charles asked.

_'Do you think anyone would mind if I called it a night?'_ she asked.

_'No, of course not,'_ he smiled: which she returned.

_'See you tomorrow then, Professor,'_ Jean smiled as she stood.

_'Good night, Jean,'_ he answered as she left the room.

* * *

Hey! I hope you all enjoyed it! Please let me know!

For Jubilee's dialog I used Google translator for it. So, it might not be prefect. If anyone speaks Mandarin, please let me know if it's a horrible translation? Thank you!

To NCISprobie, Ophelia193, Marigab and Gracelander2: Thank you again for the kind words! You guys are awesome, I hope to hear from you all again! Please let me know if you liked this update!?

To AngelPaint07: (You didn't sign in, so I couldn't PM you) Thank you! I think this update came up soon enough :) And I'm pretty sure I answered all of your questions! Please feel free to ask more! I'll admit I keep re-readings everyone's reviews to make I addressed all the questions asked of me this round! :) I hope you enjoyed this chapter and I hope to hear what you think of this update!?


	66. Chapter 65

Please enjoy,

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Sixty-Five

Charles sat with Logan and Hank as Ororo and the girls, Rogue, Jubilee and Kitty, sat and meditated.

_'Chuck,'_ Logan thought to him as he made eye contact. _'You can't let _Magneto_ spend the night here,'_ Logan said.

_'I have to agree with, Logan,'_ Hank thought.

_'I have seen Rogue through many crisis' and this is by far the worst I have ever seen her, which is saying something,' _Charles thought to them both. _'I don't like it any more than the two of you. But just being in the _same room _as Magneto puts Rogue at ease. That is what she needs tonight,' _Charles thought.

_'It's obscene,' _ Hank added.

_'I don't plan on allowing them to sleep in the same bed,' _Charles exclaimed._ 'And most certainly not in the same room she shares with Kitty. We still have a few extra mattress. They'll take one of the spare rooms on the floor we sleep on. Not the student's sub-level,' _Charles thought strongly._ 'This is not going to be become a regular occurrence,' _Charles tried to assure them as it seemed the girls were done with their meditation.

_'Charles?'_ Magneto thought.

_'Please come in, Magnus. We're in sub-level seven,'_ Charles said.

_'I'll see you a moment,'_ Magneto said.

* * *

Rogue opened her eyes as they finished meditating. "How you holding up, sugar?" Rogue asked. Jubilee just shrugged.

"What did you mean when you said you got the X-Men off of Magneto's list of enemies?" Jubilee asked.

"Rogue worked to get us a truce with Magneto," Ororo answered.

"By wearing down his motivations till you changed his mind?" Jubilee asked.

"Yeah, Irene summed it up pretty well," Rogue said. "It took almost two months, but I managed to attack his motivations and the means he thought he needed to use. He knew what he was doing was wrong and I managed to convince him that there was a better way. That he didn't need the x-men to play the role that he thought they did," Rogue explained. "But that's not gonna work with Irene," Rogue said sadly as she stood up.

"We'll think of something," Ororo said.

"Totally," Kitty said optimistically.

"No, we won't," Jubilee said quietly. Rogue felt her heart skip a beat at the defeated tone in her voice. "You guys don't know her like I do. Like me and Rogue do. You've never _lived_ with her. But I do think I'm little less scared than I was before," Jubilee said. "I trust you," she said to Rogue.

"I ain't gonna let you down," Rogue said strongly.

"I know," Jubilee smiled. "Xièxiè," Jubilee laughed.

"Bù kèqì," Rogue laughed. Jubilee continued to laugh before she let out a little sigh.

"I'm going to go wash my face and go back to pretending everything's okay," Jubilee said.

"I think everyone's was planning to watch a movie tonight," Rogue said.

"Yeah," Kitty said. "Romantic comedy," she smiled.

"Yeah, that's sounds prefect," Jubilee said as she stood up. "I'm going to go do that... after I get ice cream," Jubilee said. Rogue couldn't help but smile. "Ice cream always makes me feel better," Jubilee smiled as she stood up.

"That sounds _so_ good right now," Kitty exclaimed as she got to her feet. "I mean unless-" Kitty started to say as Rogue got to her feet.

"You both don't need to be here while I explain things. As soon as I'm done I'm gonna go spend some time with Max and I'll get to relax too. He's my ice cream," Rogue said with smile.

"Nǐ xǐhuan tā de wèidào rúhé?" Jubilee asked, a small smirk on her face.

"What did you just say?" Rogue asked with a laugh.

"I don't think we want to know," Kitty giggled.

"Look it up," Jubilee smiled as Rogue let out a laugh. "Wǎn'ān," she said as she headed towards the exit.

"Good night?" Rogue asked.

"Yes, shì," Jubilee answered.

"Wǎn'ān," Rogue repeated as Jubilee headed out of the room.

"Good night," Charles said; it was followed with an echo from everyone else as Rogue took a seat at the table again: she made sure she sat where there were two empty chairs next to her. Ororo also rejoined them at the table, sitting next to her. "How are you feeling?" Charles asked.

"I'm calm right now. Meditation always helps me get to this state of mind. Thanks Ororo," she smiled.

Ororo just smiled back. "But I could break down again any minute," she said honestly. "I don't think I can handle anything else happening tonight," she told him.

"We'l-" Charles started to say until his thought were interrupted when Magneto entered the room. He had a small black duffel bag in his hand. Rogue let out a sigh of relief.

"Good evening, everyone," Max said before his eyes met hers.

"Good evening, Magnus," Charles said civilly. At least he was trying. Max let out a sigh as he looked at her.

"We'll talk later," Rogue said before he could say anything. Max nodded as he walked towards her. She stood up to meet him. She let out a little sigh as fell into his arms, her eyes closing as she rested her head against his chest. He held her against him, she really did love the feel of his arms around him. _'This is exactly what I needed,' _Rogue thought to herself as she felt him kiss the top of her head.

After a moment she back away from his chest as she lifted her head up and brought her lips to his cheek. Rogue instantly felt more relaxed the moment their skin came into contact: his powers flowing into her. She closed her eyes as she felt all the metal humming around her. She didn't think Irene would bother talking to her again tonight, but now if Agatha tried anything she'd have some fire power: That alone lifted her spirits. She backed away from his face as she held onto his chest. She took a few deep breaths, just recomposing herself with a new sense of actually feeling safe.

She opened her eyes and looked at up at him. He stood, staring down at her, waiting.

"Thanks," she said with a smile.

"Always," Max said.

"Every time you say that," she said as she let out a happy sigh. She felt so relaxed, so safe in this moment in his arms.

"Yes?" he asked: his expression mirroring hers. He raised an eyebrow as he stared into her eyes. "We'll talk later," he repeated her words. She let out a sigh.

"Yes, we will," Rogue said: nodded as she backed out of his arms. They both took a seat as the table. "Okay," Rogue said after she took another deep breath.

"Rogue," Charles said interrupting her, "Perhaps, I should show everyone what happened? So, you won't have to relive it," Charles said.

"I believe that is an excellent idea," Max agreed. Rogue let out a sigh.

"Okay," Rogue said.

* * *

Later that night Magneto was getting settled in one of the spare closets, turned bedroom.

Max was making up one of the beds as Rogue was getting ready for sleep. She was in her room, grabbing clothes for the morning, brushing her teeth, etc. Charles was sitting beside the bed, a few pillows and blankets in his lap, as Max made up the bed.

_'Magnus?_' Charles thought to him.

_'Yes, Charles?'_ Max asked as he put the sheet on the bed.

_'There's something Rogue said to me earlier,'_ Charles started to say.

_Yes?'_ he asked again.

_'Rogue said she currently has to answer to three people: you myself and Irene,' _Charles said_._

_'That sound accurate,' _Max said.

_'Rogue said one of us mentioned_ telepathic enslavement_ as a threat,' _Charles said as Max made eye contact with the man. Charles handed him the blanket. _'Since we both know it wasn't me-' _Charles started to say.

_'Ironic, considering you're the only one of us who is actually capable of such a feat _without _assistant,' _Max commented.

_'Magnus, is there anything I don't know about Irene's threats or is was that threat one of the reasons why Rogue was so terrified of you?' _Charles asked as Max spread the blanket over the bed. Max let out a sigh. Charles was actually in his mind, Max couldn't lie, although he wanted to.

_'I am no longer making that threat, Charles, not to you nor to your X-Men,' _Max commented as he gestured for the pillow.

_'But you _were _going to?' _Charles asked as he tossed the pillow at the man's chest: with more force than necessary. Magneto let the gesture go: Charles had the right to be angry, he knew. _'You were going to telepathically enslave me and my students to do your bidding?'_ he asked enraged as Max calmly placed the pillow on the bed.

_'Anna, talked me out of it,' _Max said before he let out a sigh as he gestured for another set of sheets. Charles did not hand them to him: he simply stared up at him: rage in his eyes. _'It was a tactic_ I_ should never have seriously considered: not against our fellow mutants,' _he said. Charles didn't look convinced. _'So, what does it matter?' _he asked slightly annoyed.

_'What does it matter?' _Charles asked in disbelief. _'You still have the means to telepathically enslave my students. _That's_ why it matters. You could change your mind at any moment,'_ Charles yelled.

_'Yes, and lose Anna in the process: which, as you well know, is something I am _not _willing to do,'_ Max yelled in kind.

_'You could use the same tactic _on_ Rogue,'_ Charles started to say strongly. Max stared down at the man in dubiety. Is fists balled by his side. He was beyond offended that Charles thought he would be willing to do that to his beloved.

'_If I wanted a _slave_, perhaps. I don't want that for her. I never did. I love her,' _he screamed in his mind. Charles stared at him wide eyed. _'You know, I'm telling the truth,'_ Max said. _'She_ deserves_ to be surrounded by people who will do anything in their power to see that she is happy, safe, and loved. I am_ striving_ to one of those people. She brings out the best in me and I adore her for it,' _Max said.

_'This isn't about you, Mangus,' _he yelled._ 'It's not about me either. It's about Rogue. We have to do what is right for her,' _

_'I know that, Charles,' _Max yelled frustrated. "I'm trying," he yelled. Magneto took a deep breath before he took a seat on the bed, facing Charles. '_I will admit that in the past I have worked diligently to alter your view of me: to force you to see me as an enemy,' _Max started to say_. _

_'That is how I _should _have viewed you from the start,' _Charles said.

_'I am not a threat to you any longer. You act as through I am some vile monster, who lives only to make your life a living hell. Yes, in the past, I have used you and yours, but I have _helped _your X-Men as well,'_ Max said_. _

_'How?' _Charles asked mockingly.

_'Who do you think has been funding this school of yours?' _Max asked. Charles eyes widened.

_'What?' _he asked in shock.

_'You're in my mind, Charles. Am I lying?'_ he asked. Charles stared at him for a long moment: clearly trying to compose himself.

_'For how long?' _Charles asked finally.

_'From the start. All our talks in the hospital convinced me that mutant kind needed a public team, a beacon in the spotlight to show humanity the good we are capable of. When you started to build this school, I couldn't write the checks fast enough,' _Max said.

_'Which one are you?' _Charles asked bitterly.

_'Which contributor am I?' _Max asked.

_'Yes,'_ Charles said. _'So, I know who's checks to rip up,_' he said with malice in his voice.

_'All of them,_' Max answered.

_'That's not possible,'_ Charles said.

_'Contributor's usually want something in exchange for their donations, don't they? Their name on a building or in a program. I've been getting a rather sizable tax right off thanks to my donations to your school. But aside from that, I've had a stage to map out human mutant relations- wait, you're right. Not all-'_ Max said cutting himself off. '_Since you took Anna in, Victor has been sending checks to your accountant,'_ Max said.

_'I know. _He_ didn't use an alias. The checks were actually_ in_ his name,'_ Charles said.

_'Is Anna aware of this?_' Max asked with a raised eyebrow.

_'The first check came with a note: "Thank you for taking care of my daughter. Let me know if she needs anything else." There was an address listed. I showed Rogue, of course. She nearly started crying when I did. The idea that she had a _caring _parent was so foreign to her. We talked briefly about taking a trip to go see Victor together but then the next day he tried to kidnap her and some of the other students. Understandably, she didn't wish to talk to him after that. She thought the checks were just some ploy to learn the Institute's address and fight Wolverine,'_ Charles said.

_'The _very_ next day?' _Max asked. _'Seems a little suspicious, don't you think?' _

_'Now, _yes_,'_ Charles exclaimed as they made eye contact. They were both thinking the exact same thing._ 'It was probably Irene,_' Charles through with a sigh.

_'It was probably Irene,_' Max repeated dryly.

_'Something _else_ to hurt her,'_ Charles thought _'When is this going to stop?'_ he asked himself frustrated.

_'I don't know,' _Max said sadly._ 'Charles, I think we should leave this one alone for now. It's more of the same tactic Irene has used to keep Victor out of her life: which thankfully isn't the case anymore. I have a list of issues she and I need to talk about once she regains the desire to learn of her past. I 'll simply add this to that list,' _Max thought.

_'Very well,' _Charles said before he let out a sigh and handed Max the sheets.

_'Thank you,'_ Max said as he stood up

_'I am at a complete lost, Magnus,_' Charles started to say. _'It was difficult enough learning everything you had done in secret. I still don't know all of it, do I?_' he heard Charles ask as he put the sheet on the second bed.

_'I doubt you ever will,'_ Magneto said."Perhaps, it's for the best,"he muttered mostly to himself. _'All we can do now is offer Anna our support and try to find some means to help her. Anna, said it herself: she has no issue with learning the languages,' _Max said as he put the blanket on the bed.

_'But what will Irene ask of her next?'_ Charles asked alarmed.

_'I don't know,'_ Max thought bitterly. _'We'll do what we can,'_ Max said.

_'Have you had any luck locating Irene?' _Charles asked.

_'No,' _Max said bitterly as he gestured for the pillow_. 'This wouldn't be the first time she has disappeared for a prolonged period of time,' _Max said as Charles threw it to him_. _

_'When was the first?' _Charles asked as Max put the pillow on the let out a sigh as he sat on the newly made bed.

_'The night I brought Anna to Amelia's when she was a baby,' _Max said as Charles eyes widened in shock.

_'What?' _the other man asked confused.

_'Irene sent me to get Rogue, I was told she was an orphan already,' _Max explained.

_'But you found Rogue at the site of her mother's death,' _Charles said.

_'Yes, I brought Anna to Amelia's and demanded to speak with Irene. But she was already gone. I searched for her with all of the resources I had at my disposal, but I didn't see Irene again for nearly a year. I only found her because she _wanted _to be found. She wanted to raise Rogue herself,' _Max said.

_'And you let her?' _Charles asked is disbelief.

_'I _needed_ Irene to find the orphans. Of course, I didn't trust her, but already she had a mental block in place that my best telepaths could not break. I had them spend two weeks _trying_. If I wanted to keep helping young mutants find loving homes I needed Irene's help. I had little choice but to allow her what she wanted in exchange for her services,' _he finished.

_'She manipulated you,' _Charles said.

_'Yes,'_ Max agreed bitterly.

_'And now's she manipulating Rogue,_' Charles said thought as Rogue entered the room: a bundle of clothes in her hands.

"Hey," Rogue said as she put her stuff on top of a small table, in the far left corner of the room.

_'We still need to convince her not to go to school tomorrow,_' Charles thought quickly.

_'I agree. She can not handle the stress, nor should she force herself too,'_ Max thought.

"I'll call the school first thing in the morning as we discussed and get you transferred into that class," Charles started to say as Rogue crossed to the bed.

"Thanks, Prof," Rogue said as she sat down next to Magneto.

_'I have an idea. If you'll follow my lead?'_ Max said.

_'Go ahead_,' Charles said.

"Anna, I know you said that you do not wish to miss another day of school, but I've already cleared my schedule for tomorrow. I could start teaching you Russian," Max said.

"I'm sure the two of you would be able to cover a lot of material in a day," Charles said.

"If I apply myself," Rogue muttered sadly. Max made eye contact with Charles again.

"Which all know you will," Max said. "You'll feel better once you have a grasp on at least one of the languages," Max said.

"That's a good idea," Rogue sighed. Max watched her eye shift back and forth between him and Charles. "Alright, fine," she exclaimed. "I'll stay home tomorrow. I know that's what you both are getting at," Rogue said. Max waited Charles let out a sigh in relief.

"I'm glad to hear it," Charles. "We'll talk more tomorrow, if you like," Charles said.

"Thanks," Rogue said.

"Good night," Charles said as she turned his chair around. Magneto resisted the urge to help him do so faster.

"Good night, Prof," Rogue said as Charles made his way to the door.

"Good night, Charles," he said as Charles exited the room. Magneto used his powers to the door behind the other man. Max said as he looked down at his girl. She looked exhausted. "Do you want to talk tonight or tomorrow?" he asked. He watched Rogue glance away from him for moment: thinking.

"Tomorrow," she sighed. "I'm beat," she said.

"I know," he said sadly as he put his hand on her shoulder. "You've had enough conversations for one day," he said. Rogue let out a sigh as she stood for a moment.

"You made up a second bed?" she asked with a small smile.

"It made Charles _feel_ better," Max commented as he drew the blanket down. Max couldn't help but smile as he heard a soft laugh come from her. They both got onto the bed: Max drew the covers over them.

"Thank you for being here," Rogue said as she settled in by his side: her arm resting across his chest.

"Not at all," he said dismissively as he wrapped his arm around her shoulders.

"Max," she said seriously as she placed her hand on his cheek. He allowed her to turn his face towards her till they made eye contact. "You do a lot for me. You're helping me with my powers. You rush to my side whenever I need you," she said as she slide her hand down to his chest. "You let me use your resources. You play nice with people we both know you don't really like. I just- I want you to know I don't take that for granted. I don't take _you_ for granted. Thank you," she said earnestly. He stared down at her.

"I know you don't take me for granted, beloved," he said with a happy sigh. She smiled widely at that. "I love you so much," he said.

"I-" she started to say as he stared into her eyes.

_'There's that look again,'_ he thought to himself: he saw love in her eyes.

"I-" she struggled to say again.

"Shh," he hushed gently. "You don't have to say anything," he whispered before he brought his lips to hers. She moaned softly against his mouth.

"You didn't bring an inhibitor field with you, did ya?" she asked in a whisper. He couldn't help but smirk.

"Afraid, not," he answered: his volume matching hers. "Are you certain you aren't too tired?" he asked.

"Well, _yeah_," she whispered as she moved to straddle his lap, "but if I'm gonna feel this exhausted in the morning, might as well be for a good reason," she whispered before she kissed him again. He smirked against her lips as he moved his hands to her waist. She moaned softly against his lips as their groins rubbed against each other.

"There is one beneath sub-level eight-" he started to say.

"I destroyed that one weeks ago," Rogue said. "_Before _the truce," she added.

"You don't have to explain," Max said as he ran his hands up and down her body. Her eyes closed as he touched her. "I would have done the same," he said before he kissed her neck: his hand cupping her breast. "I do have a pair of gloves with me," Max offered her eyes snapped open. She met his glaze: her eyes lite up, she was clearly excited by the idea. Both of their heads turned as they heard a knock at the door.

"You two got everything you need?" Logan asked dryly.

"Shit," she whispered as she quickly rolled off of him. She almost fell off the bed, but Max reached out and grabbed her: pulling her back onto the bed.

"Are you alright?" he mouthed to her as she repositioned herself.

"Yeah," she mouthed as she nodded her head: she had the largest grin on her face. "We're good," Rogue called out: as she tried not to laugh. "Thanks, Logan," she said as she settled back in by his side. Max could hear Wolverine growling softly under his breath as he walked away from the door. "Damn it, he's gonna be cock-blocking us all night," she whispered.

"He's what?" Magneto asked in whisper.

"You never heard that phrase before?" Rogue asked.

"No, I can't say that I have," he replied. He repeated the phrase in his mind. "It means _exactly_ what it sounds like, doesn't it?" he asked.

"Yeah," she smiled: she was trying so hard not to laugh.

"Americans," he muttered mostly to himself before they heard another knock at the door. "I feel like a naughty school boy," Max commented in German. The hugest grin came to her face before Rogue buried her head into his chest as she laughed: she was trying not to make noise.

"Rogue, Magneto?" Charles asked.

"Yes, Charles?" Max asked.

"I thought we agreed you two were going to be sleeping in separate beds," Charles said.

"You handed me two sets of bedding. It was strongly_ implied_, yes, but neither Anna nor myself _agreed_ to any such thing verbally," Magneto said with a smile.

"Magnus, you're being a child," Charles said: his tone annoyed.

"And you're being a cock-block," he said before he could stop himself. That was the last straw: Rogue let out a loud laugh.

"I'm being a what?" Charles exclaimed over Rogue.

"Stop making me laugh, you jackass," she exclaimed through her laughter as she hit him on the chest. He held her to him as she laughed harder than he had ever seen her before.

"Charles, I just wanted to put Anna in a better mood_. _It_ worked,"_he laughed. "We'll go to sleep now," Max said as he himself laughed.

"This isn't amusing, Magnus," Charles said.

"It really is," Rogue said against his chest: his body vibrated with the motion of her laughter. "Prof, really," Rogue started to say: as she struggled to regain control over herself. She took a deep breath. "We're gonna go to sleep now," Rogue said.

"In_ separate _beds," Charles said strongly. Rogue and Magneto looked at each other.

"Charles does not get to dictate where I sleep," Max said in German.

"You're in his house," Rogue argued in German.

"That I pay for," he replied.

"Without an inhibitor field, it really is a bad idea for us to-" Rogue started to say

"Since when has that ever stopped us?" Max asked with smirk. Rogue let out a soft giggle as she stood up. She leaned down and kissed him again before she walked over the other bed.

"Rogue?" Charles asked.

"In separate beds," Rogue said with a sigh as she sat down on the second bed.

"Thank you," Charles said annoyed. "Good night," he said dryly.

"Good night," Rogue said again before Magneto used his powers to pull the second bed right up next to the one he was seated on. Rogue put her hand over her mouth to keep herself from making any noise. In her eyes he saw she was incredibly amused by the gesture.

"Chuck, you know, he just moved the beds closer together, right?" Logan asked. Rogue snickered under her breath as she let her back hit the mattress.

"Good night," Magneto said strongly as he used his powers to turn off the lights in the room. He heard Charles let out a sigh as Max laid back onto the mattress. He turned his head turns Rogue's.

"Chuck," Logan protested.

"Let's just all go to bed," he heard Charles said from the hallway. "It's been a very long day. And I for one would like to get some sleep. We can all argue more over breakfast," Charles said. It was very quiet as Charles and Wolverine went back to their rooms. He heard Rogue inch closer to him on the mattress.

"We're you just invited to breakfast?" Rogue whispered in disbelief.

"I think, I'm making progress," he whispered jokingly before Rogue turned her face into the pillow and let out a muffled laugh. He ran his hand down the back of her head a few times. She lifted her head up and faced his: bring her lips to his again.

"Good night," she whispered: he could still hear the smile in her voice.

"Good night," he whispered before he kissed her once last time that evening.

* * *

Thank you again to everyone that read and reviewed last chapter! Please review again: I want to know what you think! :)


	67. Chapter 66

Please enjoy,

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Sixty-Six:

Magneto opened his eyes slowly: there was a dim light on in the other wise dark room that kept waking him up slightly. On the bed next to him he saw his girl sitting up Indian style: a laptop in front of her. She had ear-buds in her ears, listening to whatever was playing on the laptop. She was staring intently at the screen. He glanced over at the laptop's screen to see a language program running. His eyes glanced over to the time on the screen. It was only 3:30am. Rogue was moving the wireless mouse on her knee to answer questions. He sat up and used his powers to bring his black duffel bag to his hand. She turned her head toward him for a moment.

"Sorry, if I woke ya," she whispered.

"It's fine," he whispered with a smile as he unzipped the bag. She returned his smile before her attention to the screen in front of her. Magneto pulled out a pair black gloves. He put them on as he used his powers to placed the bag on the floor. He moved to sit behind her. He heard let a little sigh as she leaned back; resting against his chest as he put his hands on her shoulder. She reached up and pulled out one of the ear-buds, leaving the other in. He slowly moved his hands to her shoulders, rubbing her tense skin as he glance over her shoulder to look at the computer screen. As Rogue had already said: she was studying Chinese first, so Jubilee could speak to someone of her ordeal as soon as possible.

"How long have you been up?" Max asked.

"About an hour," she answered as she answered a question on the screen. "I couldn't really sleep," she sighed. "I thought I might as well be productive," she whispered as he ran his hands down her sides

"You could still get some sleep," he said in her ear.

"I'm already awake," she muttered as he massages her side with one hand: his other slid to her stomach.

"I could fix that," he whispered in her ear before he kissed her neck.

"Don't tempt me," she smiled as she leaned her head to the side: given him more access to her skin.

"If you're certain, I could stop," he uttered playfully as he slid his hand to her breast. She let out a happy sigh as her hand left the mouse and moved over his hand on her side. He used his powers to close the laptop and place it gently on the floor.

"Logan?" she asked: her breath becoming heavy.

"Seems to be asleep at the moment," Max answered.

"That's good," she muttered as she pressed his hand down against her: urging him to lower his hand. He didn't need to be told twice. He slid her hand down her body: in between her legs. He rubbed his fingers there in a circular motion over her pajama pants. "Max," she moaned softly as her hand took a fist full of the blanket. He massaged her clitoris through her pants for a few moments. "Harder," she ordered breathlessly as she pressed herself into his hand.

"Anything you want, my love," he whispered against her neck as he slid his hand underneath her pants and underwear. She let out another gasp as he found her clitoris: applying more pressure than before. With his free hand she pulled her shirt up, exposing her breasts. He gently pulled on her arm: moving her to lay her back over his left thigh: there was no resistance from her in the movement. Her eyes were closed, her face flushed as he leaned down her over body and licked her nipple: causing a moan to escape her lips.

"Shh," he hushed gently: a reminder as he massaged her other breast with his hand: he slipped two finger inside of her. She let out a series of gasps: while trying to be quieter. He brought his lips to her as he thrusted his fingers in and out of her. She moved in time with his hand as she reached up. Her gloved hand cupped his cheek: holding his face to hers as they deepened the kiss.

She was close, he could tell as he increased his speed with his fingers. She broke the kiss, her breaths coming so fast.

"Pillow," she whispered. "I need a," she gasped as he reached behind him and handed her what she asked for. She placed it against his stomach. She pressed her face into the pillow as she moaned: serving to muffle the sounds he was bring out of her. Her hand found his shirt: holding herself up.

After a few moment she backed away from the pillow sightly: gasping for air. Her eyes were closed: Her face beat red. The expression on her face, it almost seemed as though she was in pain.

"Anna, do you want me stop?" he asked in a whisper. Her eyes snapped open, meeting his.

"Don't you fucking dare," she ordered strongly. He couldn't help but let out a dark chuckle as her mouth opened: her eyes closed: a soft whimper escaping her lips. She pressed her face against the pillow again, another moan escaping her as she buckled against his hand. He smirked as his free hand found her breast. "Ahh, fuck," she gasped against the pillow as he twisted her nipple.

"Almost there, my girl," he uttered as he inserted a third finger into her. He thrusted his fingers in and out of her. Her body shook violently against him and her grip on his shirt was slipping. He wrapped his arm around her shoulder, holding him to him. "I'm just curious, Anna," he whispered into her ear, "do you think you would have come already if it was my member inside of you?" he asked darkly.

Her answer was a scream muffled into the pillow as she buckled against his hand: coming hard. He smirked, as he kept his fingers thrusting into her fast and hard, as she came.

"I'll take that as a yes," he smirked against her ear. As her scream seemed to died down, so did his pace. Slower and slower he went, his thrusts in time with her breath. Rogue turned her face, now resting her cheek against the pillow: as she caught her breath.

"You know you could've just knock me unconscious like you used to," she whispered as she glanced up at him.

"I hardly see the fun in that,'" he smiled. Rogue let out a small laugh as she slid her hand down his body, as she used his powers to undo the button and lower the zipper on his pants. He had never had a lover use these types of powers to undress him before. After so many years, he honestly thought nothing would seem novel to him. He loved that she was capable of surprising him.

He hissed as she reached in and took out his hardened member. She stroked his cock as she sat up: her eyes opening.

"You don't have to-" Max started to whisper before she made eye contact with him: he slipped his hand out from her pants.

"You really gonna say no to me right now," she whispered: her eye were lite up playfully as she took the pillow off of him and threw it on the other bed.

"... Not with _that _look in your eyes," he said

"Good," she smirked before she placed her hand on his chest, pushing him down. He grinned as his back hit the bed. He honestly didn't mind when she took charge like this. He brought his fingers to his mouth, licking them clean. "I taste good?" she asked as she stroked him.

"You know you do," he uttered before his eyes closed.

"I think I need a little reminder about how you taste," she whispered playfully: her voice so low he barely heard it. It when then he felt her tongue lick the tip of his cock as she massaged his shaft. He let out a hiss at the feel of it. For the countless time, he was overjoyed they had discovered her tongue couldn't absorb him. Max laid his head back against the bed: deciding to just enjoy what his girl was doing to him.

* * *

Hours later Max sat up in the bed. On the bed next to him was his Rogue: unconscious. She looked so peaceful, laying there.

_'I wonder if she would consent to me hiring her a bodyguard,' _he asked himself. He made a mental note to ask her later when the conversation couldn't be watched by Irene. Max turned back to the laptop on his lap. He had been reviewing some contracts he was due to sign: he might as well get some work done today. There was a knock at the door.

_'Charles?_' he asked in his mind: knowing who was at the door.

_'Magnus,_' Charles replied.

_'She's still asleep. I'm supposed to wake her up by ten,' _Magneto informed him,

_'How is she doing?' _he asked.

_'As well as we can expect. She and I haven't had a chance to talk yet. I'll know more then,'_ Max answered.

_'Please let me know if she needs anything,'_ Charles said as Max could feel his chair moving away from the door.

_'Actually, Charles,' _Max started to say.

_'Yes?'_ he asked.

_'We've missed breakfast, haven't we?' _Max asked.

_'By an hour,'_ Charles replied.

_'When she wakes, could I use your kitchen?'_ he asked. Charles had already allowed him to stay the night. Being a respectful house guest was the least he could do to encourage a repeat of this event.

_'I suppose so,'_ Charles said after a slight hesitation.

_'Thank you,'_ Max said.

_'You're welcome,'_ Charles replied.

* * *

Rogue felt someone shaking her shoulder.

"Anna," Max's voice called out to her.

"Hmm," she muttered.

"Time to wake up, my love," he said.

"Hmm," she moaned. "Five more minutes," she said. She heard him chuckle as she turned back over: enjoying the warmth of the blanket around her. She let out a soft sigh as she felt him rubbing the back of her neck. "Thought you were trying to wake me up?' she asked playfully. He let another chuckle before she felt him kiss her head. She felt him move closer to him. She turned to face him, draping her arm over his chest as he settled in beside her. "Can't we just spend the whole day in bed?" she asked.

"You need to eat," he answered.

"I have no appetite," she told him sadly.

"I know," he said with a sigh as he brushed hair out of her face. She closed her eye. "That's why you need to eat. That's why you need to get up and out of this room," he said. She let out a sigh at that.

"Or we can lay here and talk," he suggested. "We still do need to do that," he said. Rogue let out a sigh.

"Where do you wanna start?" she asked.

"How are you feeling?" he asked. She glanced away from him for a moment.

"I'm been trying not to focus on that," she said.

"I know. But you can't keep pushing your feelings away, ignoring the effect that they have on you," he said.

"I just wanna know what she wants from me," she said as she looked at him again. "If I knew, then... I- I always knew what you wanted from me back when- fuck," she said bitterly. "This is completely different then what you put me through. It's new and more dangerous and I'm terrified, Max. I don't-" she said as tears ran down her face. She felt his arm go around her, pulling her closer to him. "I feel safe right now, I always do when I'm with you," she smiled. "But I- I can't expect you to be next to me twenty- four-seven. If I do what she wants, I'll should be fine," Rogue said trying to convince herself. "I don't think she would've spent all this time raising me if she just wanted to kill me off," Rogue said.

"I don't recall her making you any such promise," he pointed out sadly. Rogue felt more tears run down her face as she rested her head against his chest again. Why did he have to say that? She knew he was right, but that wasn't what she wanted to hear right now. She felt him kiss her forehead.

_'If you do what Irene wants this time Miss Lee will be fine,'_ the fragment of Magneto said in her mind pointed out: her eyes widened. '_We both know you're not going to let that poor girl die. But we don't know what demands will come next or how unreasonable they could potentially be. I will not leave you unprotected_,' he thought strongly. _'Give me a week, my girl. I have a few ideas, but I need to make some phone calls,'_ the fragment said. Rogue took a deep breath: trying to suppress her fear. Had she just earned herself another conversation with Irene?

"Max, I- I don't wanna talk about this anymore. Later, okay?" she asked as she made eye contact again.

"Alright," he said with nod. "Anna, I didn't mean to frighten you further," he said.

"I know," she said with a sad smile. "You're just trying to help," she said as she glanced up at him. She leaned up and kissed him. "Thank you," she said. He smiled at that. She let out a tired sigh. "I just woke up, how can still be this tired?" she asked.

"Because you need to eat something," Max said: before she let out a soft laugh. "And then you need to do something fun," he added.

"We already did something fun today," she smiled.

"Yes," he laughed, "Fun but _exhausting_," he smirked. "We need to find something to do together that doesn't involve tiring either of us out," he said.

"Chess?" she suggested.

"Mentally or physically," he added. "I think you could do without have to feel the need to defend yourself for a day," he said.

"So, we should be sitting or laying down whole time?" she asked.

"That would be ideal," he said.

"For what, like two- two and a half hours?" she asked.

"That would be an adequate amount of time, yes," he said.

"I guess, we'll just be_ looking_ at something? I mean, maybe we could read- No- We'd- we'd have ta get a copy of the same book and I don't think we have more than one copy of anything aside from a text book. I mean, unless we could find _some_ sort of means to experience a story playing out in front of us _simultaneously_. But what's the likelihood of _that_ happened?" she asked as she made eye contact with him again. He didn't look assumed. She couldn't help but smirk.

"I think I have an idea what you're getting at," he said dryly.

"Unless you got a better idea, Max?" she asked with a soft laugh. He let out a sigh.

"Alright, fine, we can watch a movie," he said.

"Really?" she asked a huge grin on her face. He looked at her for moment, before smiling.

"The idea alone just brought that expression to your face, my girl," he said as he cupped her cheek. "Yes, we can watch a movie," he laughed.

"We don't really have much of a selection in the house right now. We can over to blockbuster. Maybe start with a couple of documentaries so, you won't feel like you're not gaining anything out of it?" she asked. He smiled at that.

"Did you just purpose a compromise?" he asked with a smirk.

"I think I might have, yeah," she grinned. He chuckled before pulling her into another kiss. "I think, we getting good at this whole being in a relationship with each other thing," she smiled.

"I think so too," he agreed before he kissed her again. This time he deepened the kiss: Rogue moaned against his lips.

"You keep letting me kiss you like this, Max, I'm gonna knock you unconscious," she said.

"I'd like to see you try," he said playfully. She laughed before kissing him again. "Actually, I _would_ like to see you try. Remind me next Saturday," he told her.

"Okay," she smiled before they kissed again. She smiled as she backed away from his face slightly. "I think I'm gonna go take a shower," Rogue said.

"I'll start our breakfast then. We'll meet in the kitchen?" he asked.

"Okay," she said before she gave him one more peck on the lips.

* * *

Magneto stood in the kitchen in front of the stove, he was cooking breakfast, and a second breakfast for whomever wanted some. Max assumed it was going to be just himself, Anna, and perhaps Charles eating. Rogue was had gone to take a shower, although he was excepting her to join him in the kitchen any moment. However, it was Wolverine who entered the kitchen first.

"Good afternoon, Wolverine," Magneto said as he flipped a pancake.

"Hey," Wolverine said as he walked up to the coffee maker.

"Would you like some?" he asked as Wolverine took a mug out from the cabinet. "There will be plenty," Magneto said.

"Sure, why not," Wolverine said dryly. "...You know, Magneto you surprise me," he started to say as he poured himself a drink.

"How so?" Magneto asked: as he kept an eye on the frying pan.

"Didn't take you for submissive type," Wolverine said. Max eyes widened for a moment. There were a number of responses he could give.

"You have my apologies if we woke you last night," Max sad smoothly. "It was not our intention," he added.

"Yeah, I know, ya two tried. You two didn't wake anyone else, but nothing really gets past my heightened senses," Wolverine said as he walked up next to him. "I'm only going to say this once, Magneto," he started to say, as Max turned to look the shorter man in the eyes. "You hurt her again, I don't know how yet- Hell, I might even team up with_ Sabertooth_ on this one, but I'll find a way to make you hurt _ten fold_ whatever you do to her," he threatened. He considered for a moment mocking the man, but that wasn't what the situation called for. This was as close to a heart-to-heart the brute in front of him was capable of.

"I love her, Wolverine. I want to bring her peace of mind: to make her happy," he said. Wolverine eyed him for a moment. After a moment he nodded.

"Yeah, we can all see that. You keep treating her right, and we won't have a problem," Wolverine said before he turned to walk away.

"Are you going to tell Charles?" Max asked as Wolverine made his way towards the exit.

"Chuck let you two sleep _alone_ in the same room. He should've known better," Wolverine said dryly. Max couldn't help but smirk at that as Max turned back to his pan: he lifted the pancake up with his spatula; adding it with the others already prepared. "Give me a heads up when breakfast is really, will ya?" he asked as Max cut another piece of butter off of the stick and tossed it into the frying pan.

"Certainly," Max said as he picked up the mixing bowl and poured more fix into the frying pan.

"Thanks," Wolverine said as he exited the room.

* * *

Hey! Thank you for reading! Let me know what you thought? :)

Speak of which!

Thank you again: Ophelia193, Marigab 2x :), NCISprobie, Maniac Productions, Angelpaint07 and Dark Moons and Whispered Words for the reviews! :)


	68. Chapter 67

Hey everyone! Sorry for the delay in posting. I had some major writer's block! But I'm back now! I was trying to force myself to continue to write what happened the same morning we left off from. But nothing fun or interesting was coming to me. Just a lot of awkward small talk and maybe a few more reveals for Charles and some arguing about their relationship. But that all seems so old hat at this point. I just want to be past that already and so does Rogue, Magneto, and Charles (more so the reveals for him, he would continue arguing about the relationship if he thought he could convince Rogue to stop seeing Max) for that matter. So, moving on...

* * *

Please enjoy,

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Sixty-Seven:

On Wednesday April 10th 2002, Magneto stood in a hallway outside of Emma Frost and Graydon Creed's apartment. Staring ahead at the wooden door in front of him, he lifted his hand up and knocked on the door. Within a moment, the door opened to reveal Emma Frost.

"Good evening, Emma," Magneto said.

"Sir," she said with a slight nod as she opened the door to let him in.

"Thank you," Magneto said as he made his way through the door.

"Mr. Creed," Emma said surprised.

"Hey," Victor said with a smile as Magneto watched the two of them hug. "Em, how many times I gotta tell you call me Victor, or hell _dad?_" he asked. Emma let out a laugh in response. "That boy of mine pop the question yet?" he asked.

"He's _thought_ about it," Emma said with a smirk. "But he wants the damn internship to be over, and he wants to start his career before we talk about marriage: which I understand. Plus, we're only twenty-four. We're not really in a hurry to start a family yet," she explained as they walked further into the apartment and into the dinning room

"Yeah, you don't wanna rush into something like that," Victor agreed as he and Magneto sat down at the dinning room table.

"How long did you and Raven wait before starting a family?" Emma asked. Victor let out a short laugh.

"We were both over a hundred before we had Gray," Victor said.

"No, I don't think we'll wait _quite_ that long," Emma said with a small smirk as Victor let out another laugh. "Can I get either of you something to drink?" she asked.

"Water, if you would be so kind?" Magneto said. Emma nodded.

"You got any beer?" Victor asked.

"Blue moon?" Emma asked.

"Hell yes," Victor answered happily. Emma let out another soft laugh.

"I'll be right back, and Graydon should be home any minute," Emma said as she exited the room.

"I really like that girl," Victor commented to Magneto. "She's good for Graydon," he added.

"She most certainly is," Max agreed. "They're very happy together," he said with slight smile. Victor nodded.

"Anything going on with your kids?" Victor asked.

"Actually, Lorna just introduced us to her boyfriend," Max answered. "Do you remember Scott Summer's brother?" he asked as Emma re entered the room.

"The blond kid?" Victor asked as Emma handed him his drink. "Thanks" he said.

"Thank you, Emma," he said as he took the glass of water out of her hand. "Yes, that's the one," Magneto answered.

"How the hell did that happen?" Victor asked with a laugh.

"How did what happen?" Emma asked as she sat across from the two of them.

"My daughter Lorna, and Scott Summer's younger brother, Alex Summers, are dating," Magneto answered her. "Apparently, they go to the same school and share similar interests," Magneto answered.

"Small world," Victor chuckled before he took a sip of his drink as they heard the front door opened.

"Graydon," Emma smiled as he entered the dinning room a moment later.

"Hey," he grumbled: clearly in a bad mood.

"The meeting didn't go well then?" Emma asked as he took a seat next to her.

"No, the meeting went _great_," he said. "We brain stormed about the possible ways to influence congress to enforce some sort of registration for mutants. Because of what a potential _menace_ they can be we need to know who they are and what they can do," he said annoyed.

"Is this something we should be worried about?" Magneto asked.

"Right now it just a group of young professionals talking in an empty office after work. They plan to start contacting congress members to get a feel who might be willing to support the legislation. It's going to be done quietly, staff members talking in whispered around the office: hypothetical conversations about the _importance_ of such a bill," he said bitterly as Emma put her hand on his arm, rubbing slightly. Graydon took a deep breath. The boy was clearly trying to hold back his anger.

"Then they're going to start drafting the legislation, behind closed doors before the real conversations start, before any real support is gained for the bill. I'll get a copy as soon as it's done and a list of the congress members who support is supposedly in favor of the bill, and we'll stop this bill for ever making it onto the floor," Graydon said.

"Thank you, please do," Magneto said. Graydon nodded.

"It just pisses me off," Graydon exclaimed.

"I know, darling," Emma said gently. "But you're doing good work," she said.

"I know," he sighed before he ran a hand through his hair: taking a deep breath. "How was your day?" he asked with a forced half smile.

"It was good," she said with a sad smile.

"I'm glad to hear it," he said before sighing again

"Love you," she said.

"Love you, too," he said before they kissed. "Sorry," he said before he turned to the two men at the table. "I always get like this after a meeting. Can't express it there, so, this is how I get," he said. "So, what's going on? Why are we here?" he asked.

_'Emma, if you could please establish a psychic link between the four of us,'_ he ordered.

_'Yes, sir,_' she said.

_'There is quite a bit that has happened since you have all last spoke to Rogue,' _Magneto started to say as Graydon let out a sigh._ 'There are certain facts that have come to her attention that she has been meaning to bring to inform you all of, but she has yet to do so for various reasons. So, I will take the liberty and spare her that task,'_ Magneto started to say.

* * *

_'And that is the situation as of today,'_ Magneto finished explaining. '_I know Charles, will be increasingly diligent to ensure she is safe while in his home but I would like to supply her with some additional security for her while she is elsewhere. Victor, that is where you come in. I would like to get you a position at the school: maybe a security guard. Someone who could roam the halls freely without too much notice be taken to them,' _he said.

_'You'll need an image inductor, of course, as well as an alias. I will have those created later tonight. Emma, your psychic blocks are among the best I have ever seen. Since we can't place those blocks in Rogue mind. We can at least put those blocks up in Victor's mind to keep him in a position to protect her if the need arises,'_ he said.

_'I'm not gonna be able to watch her the entire day. Someone's gonna take notice of the creepy new security guard staking one of the kids,' _Victor said.

_'You could play it off, that you don't trust mutants,_' Graydon suggested._ 'Then you can just keep an eye __on all of them,_' he said. It wasn't a bad idea.

_'Principal Kelly, already has a strong dislike for the mutant students. He might appreciate the ally,'_ Magneto said dryly.

_'If we stage a conversation during your last interview for the job, with Kelly himself, it could work. You play into his distrust and get him to supply you with all the free roam you need to keep tabs on Rogue throughout the day,'_ Graydon said.

_'I could help with that, if you need me to,' _Emma offered._ 'Ensure the conversation heads in the right direction,_' she said. Magneto nodded to her.

_'We'll also need Kelly to be under the impression that this is not Victor's first interview; that he has been vetting him for at least a month,'_ Magneto added.

_'I'll just need about ten to twenty minutes with him before the interview starts,'_ she said.

_'That will not be problem. Any objections, Victor?'_ Magneto asked.

_'How soon could I start?'_ Victor asked.

_'I'll get the documents drawn up tonight, along with a resume,'_ Magneto said.

_'Is there any chance the interview can be on a Saturday?'_ Emma asked._ 'My administrator is starting to lose patience with me and all the absence days on my record,_' she explained.

_'_This _Saturday,' _Magneto said. Emma nodded. _'Then it's settled,_' Magneto said.

* * *

Rogue sat at dinner with her family on Wednesday night. The usual amount of chatter and laughter filled the room. Rogue was biting into a dinner biscuit as she held open a Russian to English dictionary in the other hand.

"Hey, Rogue," Kurt said to her. Rogue glanced up from the book for a moment to look at her brother. "You've been studying non-stop all week. You should take a break," he said.

"I plan to, just not right now," she told him before she looked back down at the book. It was then her cell phone rang. "Excuse me," Rogue said as she placed the book on the table, grabbed her phone out of her pocket and stood up. The Professor and her made eye contact. "Hey, Dad," she smiled into the phone as she answered. The Professor turned back to his conversation with Hank as she walked away from the table. "How are you?" she asked.

"I'm great, kiddo. How are you?" Victor asked.

"I'm good," she answered as she walked down the hall and mostly out of hear shot of the dinner table. "What's going on?" she asked.

"Turns out Graydon gonna be in town this Friday," Victor started to say.

"Really?" Rogue asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Yeah, and I know we're supposed to play pool tomorrow night, but I was wondering if you wanted to push it off one day and have Graydon come with us? Well probably Graydon and Emma," he added.

_'Max, what are you up to?'_ she asked herself as she sat down on the floor. "Yeah, that sounds like fun," Rogue said with a smile. "Fuck, how long has it been since the three of us were the same room together?" she asked.

"Too fucking long, kiddo," Victor answered. "We're gonna have ta start making a habit of doing shit like this," he said.

"Yeah, _definitely_," she smiled. "Oh, can I bring Kurt?" she asked.

"Yeah, I guess," Victor said: he sounded a little confused.

"Him and Gray haven't really had a lot of time to get to know each other yet, and this would be great chance for them to spend some time together," she explained.

"You going out with this kid of something?" Victor asked.

"What? No," Rogue exclaimed. "Holy shit. How have I not told you this yet?" she asked herself.

"Told me what?" Victor asked.

"Kurt is Raven's _son_," Rogue said.

"_My_ Raven? Your _Mother_?" Victor asked.

"Yeah," Rogue told him.

"Get the fuck outta here," Victor exclaimed.

"It's true," she said.

"Which one he is again?" Victor asked.

"The _blue_ one," Rogue laughed.

"Course he's- Holy shit," Victor exclaimed. The was a brief pause. "Fuck," he exclaimed. "How old is this kid?" Victor asked in a panic.

"Relax," she said strongly. "Kurt ain't your son. I _checked_," Rogue said.

"You're sure?" he asked.

"Yeah, I'm positive," she said. She listened to Victor take a deep breath.

"Fucking give me a heart attack, why don't ya?" Victor said.

"Sorry, Dad," Rogue said with slight smile.

"It's alright...," he said before he let out a soft laugh. "Small fucking world we live in," Victor said.

"And only getting smaller," Rogue said with a sigh. "I gotta back to dinner, but we'll talk Friday right?" she asked.

"Yeah, Friday around four, I'll give you a call to finger out where we're meeting up," Victor answered.

"Okay," Rogue said. "Talk to you then," she said.

"Later, Kiddo," Victor said before they both hung up. She started to walk back towards the dinning room when her phone rung again. Rogue looked at her phone. The number on the caller ID was restricted.

"Hello?" she asked into the phone as she answered it. "Who is this?" she asked.

"Tell Magneto," Irene started to say enraged as Rogue eye's widened, "that he could surround you with an _army_ of bodyguards and it _still_ would not keep me from taking you if I so desired," Irene finished strongly. There was a brief pause: as through Irene was waiting for her to comment. She choose not to: not wishing to prolong call phone and the line went dead. Rogue took a deep breath as she closed the phone: her hands shaking. Rogue leaned back against the wall as she closed her eyes for a moment. She took a few deep breaths.

"Kid?" she heard Logan ask. She opened her eyes to Logan standing a few feet away from her.

"I'm fine. It was just another one of Irene's scare tactics. I'm fine. I don't wanna make a big deal out it. I don't hold a meeting to talk about one stupid phone call," Rogue told him annoyed.

"Alright," Logan said nodding.

_'Anna, if you do wish to talk about Irene or any of it really, it does not need to be an elaborate meeting. You can just talk,'_ the fragment of Max said.

_'It's nothing I haven't said already. Just more of the same,'_ she sighed.

"You look tired, kid," Logan said.

"I know," Rogue sighed. "I_ am_ tired," she said.

"Try going to sleep_ before_ three a.m. tonight, alright?" Logan asked.

"I've been trying, but I can't fall asleep," Rogue exclaimed. Logan nodded.

"This goes on for a few more days and we're going to need to talk to Chuck about it. You can't keep running on three hours of sleep a night. You're gonna crash," he told her.

"I know," she sighed.

"Have you tried meditating?" Logan asked.

"A couple of times. It helps me relax a little, but it's not helping as much this week. Not since Sunday. Hell, Max being the same room wasn't really helping as much as it usually does," Rogue muttered. "I just- I feel on edge all the time. I'm trying to do everything I can to not piss Irene off, cause I don't wanna see her. I don't wanna give her a reason. Fuck, nothing feels safe anymore. Not even doing exactly what she asked me to. I'm devoting all my time to it. And it still doesn't feel like- I don't understand the _rules_ of this blackmail," Rogue said.

"Rules?" Logan asked with a raised eyebrow.

"With Magneto the rules were so clean cut, so direct. I couldn't tell anyone we were talking. I couldn't tell anyone I was being blackmailed. I couldn't tell anyone how much danger we were all really in back then. And if he gave me a direct order, I had to follow it if I couldn't convince he shouldn't be giving me the order in the first place. That's it. And he fucking loved it when I found loophole with any of the rules. He would smile and be impressed, alter his language, change his mind about something. As stubborn as he can be, I'm twice as fucking stubborn. You all have no idea what I talked him out of doing to the x-men. I completely change the direction he wanted to take mutant- human public relations in. A fucking one-eighty on that shit," she said.

"Half the time, if I'm being honest with myself, with him I was having _fun_. It was scary but that fear is fucking nothing compared to what Irene's putting me through. If I knew what she wanted, if I knew what this was leading all up too. If I knew what she's was gonna do, or ask me to do next, I would feel so much better. It's just- Nothing feels certain or stable right now. Every time I close my eyes I half expect to open them and found myself back in my old bedroom in her house. With her telling me that the effort I've displayed wasn't good enough and now someone has to _die_ cause of that," Rogue said as tears ran down her face.

"It has always been so hard to please her," Rogue cried. "I always felt like nothing I ever did was good enough for her and now there a life on the line if I don't appeased her ridiculously high standards. Everything I've come to feel is safe these past few months, this family, being in one of those rooms telepaths can't effect you in, having private conversations- I feel like she watching me all the time Logan, and I have no idea if I'm right or not. Doesn't matter that I'm in a bathroom or a room with no windows she can see me, and she might be watching me, and I just-" Rogue said, cutting her self short. "I don't know what I'm gonna do."

"Rogue, I don't kno

* * *

w how yet, but we're gonna find a way to beat her," Logan said. Rogue let out a sigh at that.

"I know you all will try your hardest. I don't know if that's gonna be enough but, it still means the world to me, even if Irene does win," Rogue said earnestly. Logan let out sigh as he glanced away from her.

"We'll figure something out," he said sadly. Rogue smiled at that. "I'm gonna tell Chuck about the sleep thing," he told her. "Probably should have told him already," he said.

"Probably," Rogue agreed before she let out a sigh. "Our foods getting cold," Rogue told him.

"Yeah, alright," Logan said before he turned around, and started to walk into the dinning area. Rogue took one more deep breath before she followed him back into the dinning room.

"Is everything alright?" the Professor asked as she put her cell phone back her pocket.

"Yeah, everything's fine," Rogue smiled as she made her way back to her seat. "I'm just gonna hang out with my Dad Friday instead of Thursday," Rogue said as she retook her seat. "Kurt, do you wanna come play pool Friday? Graydon and Emma are gonna be there," she said. That brought a smile to her younger brother's face.

"Yeah, I'm in," Kurt exclaimed.

"Alright," Rogue said with a smile: she glanced up to see Logan and the Professor looking at each other: but they weren't speaking. Rogue let out a sigh as she picked her book back up and opened to the page she had been on. She was only a third of the way through with it and she wanted to finish it before Friday. It was going to be another long night.

* * *

Thank you all for reading! Please review!?

I just finished another 10 hour day with my three hour daily commute. :Deep breath: which is why I will be responded to reviews from the last chapter and this chapter on Sunday :) Please let me know what you thought? :)


	69. Chapter 68

Please enjoy,

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Sixty-Eight:

Rogue yet out a yawn on, Wednesday night, as she sat up on her bead. It was a little past nine p.m as she stared at the laptop in her lap: she just wanted to finish one more lesson in Mandarin before she attempted to fall asleep. Kitty was sitting on the bed next to hers, her roommate was finishing up their math home work that was due tomorrow.

"Hey, Rogue?" Kitty asked.

"Yeah?" Rogue asked as she took one of the ear phones out of her ear.

"Do you want to copy this tonight or tomorrow?" Kitty asked.

"I'll copy it before I go to sleep tonight. Just leave it out for me?" she asked.

"Sure," Kitty smiled. "I have your global homework from Jubilee too. She gave it to me after dinner," Kitty again.

"Okay, I'll get it back to her tomorrow," Rogue said. "Thanks again for letting me copy off you," added said.

"Hey, we both know you totally know this stuff, you like just have to focus on other things right now," Kitty said.

"Yeah," Rogue sighed as she turned back to the lesson on her computer. Rogue looked up again when she heard a knock on the door.

"Who's there?" Kitty asked.

* * *

Charles sat outside Rogue's and Kitty's room.

"It's me," Charles said answering Kitty. "May I come in?" he asked.

"Sure," he heard Rogue answer before he opened the door.

"Hello, girls," Charles said as he entered the room.

"Hey," Kitty smiled. He returned Kitty's smile about he turned to look at Rogue. There were dark circles under her eyes. Why hadn't he noticed those earlier?

"You and Logan talked, right?" Rogue asked.

"Yes," he answered as he moved up to her bed. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small bottle of pills.

"Sleeping pills?" Rogue guessed.

"Yes," Charles answered as he opened the bottle and took one out. "Just for tonight," he said as he handed one pill to her. "Tomorrow after school, and I want you in the infirmary. We're going to run some tests," he told her.

"Okay," Rogue said as she gestured to Kitty: who handed her a water bottle. "Thanks," she said.

"Have you been having nightmares again?" he asked as she uncapped the water bottle.

"No, I haven't been dreaming," Rogue told him before she put the pill in her mouth and took a drink of water. Charles raised an eyebrow at that.

"You haven't been remembering your-" he started to ask before cutting himself off. "No, you remember everything so... You haven't been having _any_ dream good or other wise?" he asked in disbelief.

"No, I haven't," Rogue said.

"For how long?" he asked concerned.

"Mid February, since Max got involved. Charles felt his heart skip a beat. "Prof?" she asked.

"Did Magneto had something done to your mind?" he asked. "No- you don't have to answer that. I can guess. Would it be alright if I took a look?" he asked.

"Do you have any idea what you would be looking for?" she asked.

"I would know it when I saw it," he said. She glanced away from him for a moment.

"Prof, I'm really sorry, but I can't give you free reign to roam around my mind- just looking for something. I mean- why does that matter? What's the problem?" she asked. He took a moment to choose his words with care: he didn't want her to panic.

"REM sleep has been found to be essential for emotional health and the formation of long term memories," he answered. "Dreams are how the mind organizes everything we have experienced throughout the day. It's how we form long term memories," he said. " But _every_ memory in your mind is _automatically_ formed into a long term memory," he said mostly to himself.

"Yeah," Rogue said: he glanced back up at her: her eyes were widened with shock. "Prof? If it weren't for my powers-" she started to say.

"But you _do_ have your powers. You are who you are. So, you_ have_ been able to function under this conditions. The negative effects of a lack of REM sleep have thankfully been slowed. Have you noticed _any_ change in your mental functions?" he asked.

"Since Sunday, yeah a little. I'm always tired. It's kinda getting harder for me to concentrate. I can still do it, but it's been taking more effort than it use to," she said.

"From a scale of one to ten where you rate your ability to concentrate and to form thought?" he asked.

"Like an seven," Rogue said.

"So, you're only slightly_ less_ of a genius than your usual self?" he asked with a smile. Rogue smiled at that as she let out a soft laugh. "This is going to be alright. I'm glad I'm aware it now, so we can take care of this, and get you back to ten," he said with a smile. Rogue let out a sigh.

"I thought it was just stress from everything," she said.

"That is, of course, contributing to the issue, but this needs to be addressed as well," he said.

"Okay," Rogue said. "Emma gonna be here on Friday," Rogue said.

"She's the telepath responsible for this?" Charles asked.

"Yeah," Rogue said.

"Alright, you lasted nearly two months in this state, although we're going to be monitoring your health very closely, I do believe you should be fine for the next two days," Charles said as calmly as he could.

"Okay," Rogue said. "I'll ask Emma to come back to the institute after we play pool," Rogue said.

"They're coming in on Friday?" Charles asked.

"Yeah," Rogue answered.

"Considering, it's going to be so late, please let your brother and Miss Frost know they are welcome to stay to night," Charles said. She looked pleasantly surprised by his statement. He had already allowed Magneto to spend the night in the same room as Rogue. Why not her brother and his partner?

"Thanks," Rogue said with a smile.

"Ororo and I talked about your feelings regarding all the meetings we've held to talk about your other family. And you're right, of course, it hasn't been fair to you," Charles said.

"I'm the one who isolated myself from all of them. I'm the one who choose to live with their _enemies_," Rogue said.

"Mystique left you no choice. Not after what she attempted. You needed to protect yourself for her," Charles said.

"I could've asked you to take me to my brother. You would have," she said as her eyes grew distance. "Emma's not as respectful about the whole privacy thing as you are. She would have found out about the nightmares within days. I would ended up in Emma's division of Max's origination. Just another foot solider; not second in command. No where near being on Max's radar," she said. "And Emma wouldn't have let Raven anywhere near me," Rogue said. "Not that that would have stopped my mother," Rogue said bitterly.

"Rogue?" Charles asked curiously.

"I didn't tell you that yet, did I?" Rogue asked herself. "Do you remember Risty Wilde?" she asked.

"Your friend? The one you brought over to the institute without proper planning?" Charles asked.

"Yeah, that's her. That's my mother," Rogue said bitterly as Charles' eye widened.

"Oh my god," Kitty exclaimed.

"Yeah, I've also been dealing with _that _since last Tuesday. I think it might have been different if she had chosen someone else from the house to befriend, but she choose me. She made it as personal as it get _again_. Another attack, another betrayal," she said bitterly. "But still," she laughed, "feels like a spinster compared to Irene," she said. "I don't know- I just- My mind- I just-"

"Yes?" Charles asked.

"I keep thinking about all of the lives Irene stole from me. So many little decisions, and each of them put me exactly where Irene wanted me: here, an x-man," she said.

"Yes, there is that," Charles said.

"Do you think it's possible that she had Agatha make sure I choose the x-men?" Rogue asked.

"I believe it's more than possible," Charles said darkly.

"Yeah, me too," she said sadly. "... Am I a hypocrite for letting this all bother me so much?" Rogue asked. The question took him by surprise.

"Hypocrite?" Charles asked.

"After everything I've done with Magneto while acting as his second in command," Rogue explained. "Do I have the right, really? To be angry about all of it, when I've used some of the same tactics?" she asked.

"What tactics? You've never _killed_ anyone to reach your goals," Charles said exclaimed. "You've never put someone else's life on the line. You personally have never blackmailed anyone into submission. You have never altered your appearance to fool and solicit information. Of course you have the right to be hurt by what has been done to you," Charles said. "Besides that, you didn't have an active role. You were asleep the entire time. You said so yourself," he said. Charles watched her pause: as she glanced away from him.

"Do you remember what I said to you about my negotiations with Max, when we were starting to talk about it that first time with Scott and Jean in the kitchen?" she asked as she remade eye contact.

"... There's a thin line between blackmail and betrayal. You said you were not certain if you had crossed that line," Charles recalled. "You've also said you knew more than Miss Frost and your brother_ put together_," Charles said. "Miss Frost seemed_ skeptical_," he added.

"She didn't believe it when Max said it to her face either. Doesn't mean it ain't true," she added. "I had a _very_ active role in strategic planning," Rogue said.

"Three days before the operation?" Charles asked in disbelief. "Magneto told me about the support he has shown the institute since it opened. I don't know if I would have been able to open the school at all without his funding. _Clearly_ he had been planning this since- fo_r years_," Charles said in disbelief. "How active of a role could you have had in that?" he asked in disbelief.

"I-" she started to say before she stopped herself. " I wish I could say more, but I really can't," she said. "The truce," she reminded him.

"I understand," Charles said.

"I don't know how much more I try to make you understand without actually being able to talk about it," Rogue said.

"I'll let you get some sleep then," he said.

"Thanks," Rogue said.

"See you both tomorrow," Charles said as he headed towards the door. "Good night," Charles said.

"Good night," he heard Rogue and Kitty said within moments of each other as he exited the room.

* * *

The next afternoon Rogue sat on one of the beds in the infirmary. Mr. McCoy sat across from her, a clipboard in his hand: asking her a series of uncomfortable questions, which she was doing her best to answer honestly.

"Now," he started to say before letting out a sigh. Mr. McCoy was clearly a little uncomfortable with the line of questioning as well. Both of them were trying to make the process go as quickly as painlessly as possible. "When was your last period?" Mr. McCoy asked.

"Hmm, I haven't gotten it this month yet, " she mumbled to herself. "Let me think," she said as she went over it in her mind. As it occurred to her, she felt her heart skip a beat.

"Rogue?" Mr. McCoy asked concerned.

"First week of February," Rogue said out loud: she could feel herself start to panic.

"Rogue, I see where your mind's headed, but I want you to stop thinking and take a deep breath. Could you do that?" Mr. McCoy asked. Rogue nodded as she closed her eyes. "Okay," he said she did what he instructed. She opened her eyes a few moments later to see Mr. McCoy holding a bottle of water in his hand. "Now, there are a _number_ of reasons why your period could be irregular," he said he uncapped the water bottle before he handed it to her.

"Emotional stress, increased exercise, travel, change in hormone levels in the body, to name a few," he said as she took a large sip of water. "We both know you have had an excessive amount of emotional stress these past few months. That _alone_ could be the reason. I'm going to test your blood and urine regardless, both of which will tell us whether or not you're pregnant," Mr. McCoy said.

"How long till we'll know?" Rogue asked.

"A couple of days," Mr. McCoy said. "Have you ever experienced skipped periods in the past?" Mr. McCoy asked.

"I've missed it a couple since I started getting it. But not two in row," she said worried. Mr McCoy nodded as he took a note on the clip board.

"What time of the month do you usually get it?" he asked.

"It varies," Rogue said. "I've never been regular," she said as he took another note.

"You have only missed March's so far. And from you what you've just told me I don't believe you have much reason to worry. It's only April tenth. This could mean anything," he said as she let out a sigh. "Rogue, we'll have that conversation _if_ we need to have it," he said gently.

"Are you gonna tell, Prof?" she asked.

"That's up to you," Mr. McCoy said.

"I don't want to say anything unless there's something to actually say," Rogue said.

"Okay then. This stays between us for now, and whoever else _you_ choose to talk to about it," he said.

"Thanks," Rogue said with a small smile. Mr. McCoy returned it briefly before before looking back down at his clip board.

"Alright, lets move on, shall we..." he started to say.

* * *

Charles sat with Hank in the infirmary as he watched Rogue come out of the bathroom.

"Hey, where do you want this?" Rogue asked: gesturing to the urine sample in a little containing in her hand.

"Right on the counter is fine," Hank said.

"Oh, Prof," she started to say as she placed the container where Hank had pointed. "Max is actually gonna be in Bayville today, so we're gonna go grab some dinner together. I'll be home by nine," Rogue said.

"Very well," Charles said.

"Thanks again, Mr. McCoy," Rogue said.

"You're very welcome," he said.

"Have a nice night, you two," Rogue said pleasantly enough as she headed towards the door.

"You as well," Charles said as she left the room. Charles turned to look at Hank: who was looking over a clip board as he sat in a chair by one of the beds. "How is she?" Charles asked concerned.

"I'll know more after the blood work is done, but so far every test says she's perfectly healthy. Does she need to get more sleep? Yes. But, everyone suffers from insomnia to some degree at some point in their lives. Whatever is causing it, it's in her mind. She needs a psychiatrist, Charles, not a physician," Hank concluded.

"I thought as much. I just wanted to be certain," Charles said.

"She also needs is to relax more," Hank said. "We've all seen her this week. She barely stops studying to eat anymore. She needs to take breaks. Which is why I advised her to call that boyfriend of hers and ask him out to dinner," Hank said.

"So, that's why," Charles sighed.

"If she ate dinner here, she would have just continued working as she has been. With him, she might just give herself a few hours to breath," Hank said.

"She needs to be able to relax _here_ as well," Charles interjected.

"Charles, how can she?" Hank asked. "For the last few months she has taken it upon herself to be our protector, against Magneto and now Irene. That woman could have chosen to threaten any one of us and Rogue would work just as diligently to appease her demands. She's not going to be able to relax here, most certainly not in any of the sub-levels. The association of stress and instability within these walls is too strong. Maybe when we move back into the mansion, but only time will tell," Hank said.

"Thank you, Hank," Charles said. "Please let me know if there is anything abnormal in her blood work," Charles said.

"Of course," Hank replied.

* * *

Magneto stood just outside the institute's grounds: since neither he nor Anna felt like consulting Charles. He saw his girl come out of the elevator: she glanced about until her eyes met his. A smile came to her face. He waved to her with a smile as she walked over to him.

"Hey," she said with a smile as she walked up to him. He took her into his arms as they kissed.

"How are you?" he asked. He watched her smile fade as she let out a sigh. She turned her glace away from his for a moment.

"... I don't know if I'm gonna wanna answer that question tonight," Rogue said. He raised an eyebrow at that. "I might, I might not. I don't know right now," Rogue said. Max stared down at her for a moment. It was pointless, as it usually was, to ask if she was alright. There honestly was only one question he could think to ask at that moment.

"Is there anything I can do to help with whatever it is you don't wish to speak about?" he asked. She smiled at him as tears came to her eyes.

"You really are so good to me," Rogue said happily.

"Because you _deserve_ to be treated well, my love," he said as he cupped her cheek. "Don't ever let anyone tell you differently," he said before she pulled herself closer to him: hugging him tightly. He held her against him knowing how much comfort she took in his arms. This alone was most likely helping her state of mind. And he, of course, would never tire of holding her, of being near his love. He heard her mumble something against his chest.

"My apologizes, Anna, but what did you say?" he asked. She glanced up at him, that same look in her eyes he was coming to adore.

"I love you," she said simply. He leaned down and kissed her: as his hand cupped her cheek again.

"What was that?" he asked playfully: wanting to hear her say it again.

"You heard me," she said with a slight smirk tugging at her lips: even as a couple of tears ran down her face. She was trying to ignore the tears, he could tell. So, so would he.

"Did I?" he asked.

"Yup," she smiled. "You don't need me to repeat it," she teased.

"I'm afraid my girl, that at my age somet-" he started to say playfully.

"Hell, no," Rogue exclaimed as she cut him off. "You do not get to play the fucking _age_ card to get me to repeat myself, when we're supposed to disregard that your in your seventies when it comes to everything fucking else. You do not," she said with a laugh, "get to pull that card out your ass whenever it fucking suits you," Rogue said as she smiled.

"Oh? Then what do I get to do?" he asked.

"Me," she smirked. He chuckled at that before he crashed his lips onto hers. She wrapped her arms around his neck as they deepened the kiss. "You hungry?" she asked breathlessly a few moments later.

"Not for food," he answered huskily.

"Me either," Rogue said. "Cafe? In case we change our minds?" she asked.

"It is the closest," he smirked before he kissed her again as he lifted them into the air.

"Race ya," Rogue said as backed out of his arms. "Last one there owes the other a massage," she called out as she flew up into the clouds, towards the cafe. He chuckled loudly as he flew up after her. He caught up to her much faster than he thought he was going to: he moved beneath her about a foot, turning his body to face her.

"What kind of massage does the winner get?" he asked playfully as he moved his hands to rest on her waist.

"Use your imagination," she said as she pressed her body down against his. He let out a groin as his mind filled with a series of flashes of all the things he wanted her to do to him. His eyes closed as she kissed him again: her fingers weaving into his hair. "From that tent I can feel ya pitching, I'm guessing you got few ideas," she said as she moved her hands to his shoulders.

"I most certainly do," he uttered.

"Good. Now, all ya gotta do is win," she whispered into his ear before she pushed herself off of him, breaking away from him, taking the lead. He quickly opened his eyes and rushed after her. Ahead of him he could hear her laughing.

_'If that's how you want to play it,'_ he thought to himself as he rushed to catch up with her. It took him a moment but once again he was right behind her. This time he did not stop to flirt with his girl, he flew a few feet ahead of her. "You're not winning this one, Anna Marie," Magneto said.

"We'll see about that," Rogue smirked as she pulled ahead of him again. It was neck and neck as they neared their destination.

A few moment later they neared the alley way, both of them touched down to the ground within seconds of each other.

"I won," Max grinned as he walked up to her.

"That was way too close to call," Rogue said as he took hold of her waist and pulled her up against him. Her hands went to his shoulders.

"Don't be a sore loser, Anna Marie," he said as he used his powers to open the door behind him. "Besides, you're going to get a massage of some sort today, my girl," he said as he ran his hands down her sides: she let out a soft moan at the touch, "but this little victory ensures me the privilege of going first," he said.

"So, what do you have in mind?" she asked.

"Actually, I think I would like a back massage," he said.

"Really?" she laughed.

"Well, I'm always giving them to you. I'd like to be on the receiving end for once," he said.

"Okay," Rogue said with a smile. He smirked as she felt her use his powers to turn on the mutant inhibitor field. She smiled as she started to turn towards the entrance. He took hold of her arm.

"Anna," he said as he took hold of her arm.

"Yeah?" she asked as she turned back to face him. There was something he had been meaning to say to her, but it never seemed like the right time. A thought he aware she must be thinking about to some degree, a notion he wanted to set right before it became an issue.

"For the record, my love, you are good to me too," Max said. She smiled at that. "It is very comforting to be known, to be loved," he said earnestly as he cupped her cheek again, "I've missed having someone to share my life with. You know me so well, and you don't fault me for my past, you don't judge me for me," he said.

"It's not my past to judge. Even if it was... I'm not Magda," Rogue said: he voice slightly hesitate. They had never discussed his late wife. Rogue knew it was taboo subject for him. "You killing a few dozen sum-of-the-earth Nazi's, who fucking deserved death after what they did willingly, isn't gonna cause me to run away from you. I've said it before, and even if you don't believe me, I'll say it again, you are not a monster," Rogue said strongly.

"People like us who have been put in impossible situations, with limited resources, and only a handful of options, we understand that the world ain't black and white. That morals are a luxury and it's fantastic when we have those luxuries. But being without them for so long, it makes us more willing to do what others might consider distasteful. And we don't have to lie to ourselves when it comes to what means we're willing to use to get to what we want, what we need. And even though some people will never understand it, their opinion of who you are does not stand up against someone's who actually does know you. Against someone who loves you," Rogue said strongly. He smiled down at her. "Yeah, I- yeah, I love you," Rogue said: this time to herself mostly. She looked away from him for a moment as she took a deep breath. She turned her glace back up at him.

"There's like a really _really _small chance that I might be pregnant, Irene knows that you getting me a bodyguard, and I love you," Rogue said quickly.

"Could you repeat that, please?" he asked.

"There's a-" she started to say.

"No, not that part. I heard that, but I highly doubt you are. I've never been more careful with a partner in my life," he said. "Of course, if I'm wrong, then we'll have that conversation. Please know, that I will fully support whatever course of action you chose to take," he said.

"Irene-" she started to repeat.

"No, not that either. I attempted to hide it from her, but I knew she would be aware of it soon enough. I still have every intention of seeing my plans through. As I've said before I will not leave you unprotected," he said.

"So, you just want wanna hear me say it again?" she asked with a smile.

"Say it? I want to hear you scream it from the rooftops," he said playfully. She laughed at that.

"Turn off the inhibitor field," she said. He chuckled at that before he leaned in and kissed her again. "I love you, Max," she said again.

"I love you, too, Anna Marie," he said before they kissed.

* * *

Thank you for reading! Please review! :)


	70. Chapter 69

Hey everyone! Thank you so much for reading! Life got a little crazy the last few weeks. Work has been insane and I had to go to the ER yesterday for Shingles! How does a 25 year get Shingles!? :Sighs: So, I'm on bed rest still the end of July 4th weekend. So, I have a little more time to breath than usual. Not having to go to work in fear of getting others sick will do that to a girl.

Anyway, I've been fighting with this chapter for a while, writers block and such, along with the overworked thing. So, I posted and slightly shorter chapter than usual and I'm going to start with a fresh blank word document for chapter 70 and see what the keyboard decides it's wants to type on it. :) Thank you again for everyone who has been reading and showing their support! It has been an utter joy to write this all these years and I have no plans to stop till at least 4 months time after the end of season 4, so we still have a ways to go! :) Thank you again and please enjoy:

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Sixty-Nine:

On Friday night Rogue sat with Victor at a bar in pool hall. From across the room she saw Graydon, Kurt and Emma playing a game of pool. There were smiles on their faces. Everyone was having fun. She and Victor had just finished up their first game, and were taking a quick break.

"You learn extremely fast, you know that?" Victor asked before he took a sip of his drink. Rogue smiled at that. "You were only three balls behind me," Victor said: he looked proud.

"Hey, round one was just me getting over the learning curve. Next game, you're going down," Rogue teased. Victor asked.

"Big talk," Victor exclaimed with a smile as Rogue let out a laugh.

"Big game," Rogue smiled as she stood up: she turned to head back to the pool table. It was then she felt her dad's hand on her arm.

"Hold up a second," Victor said.

"Yeah?" Rogue asked as she turned back towards him.

"There's something that's been bugging me all night," Victor started to say before he took a sip of his beer.

"Yeah?" Rogue asked before she took a sip of her Pepsi.

"If I ain't that kid's father, than who the fuck is?" Victor asked. Rogue let out a sigh.

"There's like five or six people it _could_ be," Rogue said.

"Seriously?" Victor asked.

"Yeah," Rogue said dryly.

"Fucking Raven," Victor exclaimed.

"Repeatedly," Rogue added dryly. Victor let out a soft laugh at that as Rogue took a sip of her drink.

"That's fucked up," he laughed. "...But I wish I could say I was surprised," Victor said with sigh.

"Yeah, me too," Rogue sighed.

"The fuzzball know?" Victor asked.

"You see the way he is. How_ innocent_ he is? How do I tell a kid like _Kurt_ that his birth mother is a slut?" Rogue asked.

"Yeah, that's a tough one," Victor said before he took another sip of his beer.

"I'm kinda just hoping I can put off the conversation for a few years," Rogue started to say as she glanced up: Graydon walking towards them. "Tell him when he's older, ya know?" Rogue asked.

"That ain't a bad idea," Victor said as Graydon walked up to them.

* * *

Graydon let out a sigh as he walked up to the bar. He could not believe what he was about to ask.

"You change your mind about the beer?" Victor asked.

"No," Graydon answered again. "I'm still driving them home- It's ah-" Graydon started to say, fluttered. "Kurt just asked me something," Graydon said.

"Yeah?" Victor asked.

"He ah- he just asked if there was any _chance_ you were his dad too," Graydon said.

"You gotta be kidding me," Rogue exclaimed.

"Is he?" Graydon asked alarmed.

"No," Rogue and Victor said at the same time.

"God damn it," Rogue exclaimed.

"Send the kid over here," Victor ordered. "You," Victor said as he pushed on Rogue's shoulder, "go play pool," he ordered as she stood up. "I'm gonna talk to Kurt," he said.

"Seriously," Rogue said as she made eye contact with Graydon.

"Yeah, seriously," Victor. "Now," Victor ordered.

"Okay," Graydon said. "Come on, Rogue," he said as he grabbed onto her arm and pushed her back towards the pool table.

"So?" Kurt asked anxiously.

"Dad wants to talk to you alone," Graydon said.

"You okay with that?" Rogue asked.

"Yeah," Kurt said fluttered as he nodded his head. "Okay," he muttered to himself as he headed over to the bar. They watched him take a seat next to Victor.

"So, he is?" Emma asked.

"No," Rogue answered again.

"So, what are they going to talk about?" Emma asked as Graydon watched his father order a second beer.

"Huh?" Rogue asked as Victor opened the beer and handed it to Kurt.

"Oh shit," Graydon laughed.

"What?" Emma asked.

"Dad's gonna give Kurt _the talk_," Graydon laughed. "That's awesome," he exclaimed amused.

"You mean,_ the_ talk? Birds and the bees?" Emma asked with a slight laugh.

"That's the one. I had my first beer when dad gave me the talk too," Graydon said.

"When was that?" Rogue asked.

"When I seventeen," Graydon explained. "Dad had to gently tell me that Mom was having an affair with the _nanny_ and we had the whole conversation, just to get it over with," he said. "He was actually really informative about a lot of stuff. Also, a little unnecessarily graphic, but that's just Dad being Dad. You gotta love him," Graydon said with a smile: which Emma and Rogue returned.

"Little sis," Graydon started to say as he wrapped his around Rogue's shoulder, he was careful not to touch her skin, "our brother left this side of the room but a boy, but... he will return_ a_ _man_," Graydon exclaimed dramatically as Emma let out a loud laugh. Rogue smiled. "Or an emotionally scared little boy, one of the two," Graydon added quickly. Graydon watched Rogue's eye widen. "I'm kidding," Graydon laughed. "_Relax_, will ya?" Graydon asked as she took a deep breath. "Dad knows what he's doing. He's had this talk before. So, let's play pool," he said.

"You'll take Kurt's place. Him and Graydon were playing on the same team. You two are solids, and it's your turn, darling," Emma told her pleasantly as she handed Rogue a stick. Emma made eye contact with Graydon.

_'She's been on edge all night,'_ Emma thought.

_'We all know what she's going though. Can you really blame her?_' Graydon asked as Rogue walked up to the table and took her turn.

_'I suppose not,_' Emma said.

* * *

"Bob," Victor called out as Kurt took a seat next to him, "Another beer," he ordered. The bar tender pulled out another beer and opened it, handing it to him. "Here," he said passing it to Kurt. Kurt's eye widened in shock.

"Victor, you can't" the bar tender started to say as he reached for the beer.

"The kid came over here to ask me if I'm his _father_," he explained. "He gets one. Just one," Victor said. "My son Graydon, over there," he said pointing to his son, who was laughing for some reason, he noticed. "He's driving the rest of them home. Kid ain't getting into any trouble tonight," he said.

"Victor, what if a cop-" he started to ask as Victor downed the rest of his beer.

"Then the kid stole my beer for one sip," he said as he handed the man the empty beer bottle. "I give him a little smack on the back of the head, and take it back, no harm, no fail," Victor finished. "Take a swig, kiddo," Victor ordered as he turned to Kurt, who sheepishly did as he was told. For a brief moment there was a disgusted look on the boy's face, but he managed to sallow the beer. "Heh, Gray almost spit it out too, the first time I gave him a beer," Victor said with a smile.

"Really?" Kurt asked.

"Yeah, you remind me a lot of him when he was your age. A real optimistic, sweet kid, like you, Kurt... Kiddo, if- if I had _known_ about you," Victor said as he made eye contact with Kurt. "If I knew you existed I would've raised you along with your brother and sister, without any fucking hesitation. I wish I had known about you. Wouldn't of mattered that you ain't _biologically_, my kid. It didn't matter with Rogue. That girl's my daughter, blood or no blood," he said. He paused for a moment, giving Kurt a second to process what he had just told him.

"That's- that's good to know. Thank you," Kurt said. Victor smiled at him.

"How were the people who did raise you?" Victor asked.

"My parents?" Kurt asked surprised. "They were the best," he exclaimed.

"That's real good to hear, Kiddo. I know some people who wouldn't be so accepting of how you really look," Victor said.

"There were a lot of people who weren't," Kurt sadly. "I had to hide a lot, as a child. I couldn't go anywhere without wearing this huge cloak. Ah, in the summer. It was a _nightmare_, so I didn't leave home a lot. I grew up a little farm with my parents, so they were the ones who went into town if we needed anything. I wish I had gotten out more, as a kid- but I have no complaints about my parents. They were very good to me. I actually miss them a lot. Holidays and phones calls, it's not the same as being home," Kurt said.

"I hear ya, after me and your mother split up- I travel a lot for work- but for a good _five years_ I always knew where I was headed at the end of job, _home._ It was- ah- interesting not having that anymore. I missed coming home to my kids," he said before he reached over and took the beer back from Kurt. He took a large drink before he placed the beer back on the table. He let out a sigh before he turned back to look at the boy. He was at a loss: no idea how to respond. _'I should change the subject before I bum the kid out more_,' he thought to himself. "Wagner, right?" Victor asked.

"Huh- oh, my last name, yeah it's Wagner," Kurt answered.

"Any relation to Count Baron Christian Wagner?" Victor asked.

"The Count?" Kurt asked surprised. "A distant cousin, I think. He lives a few towns over from my parents in Germany. We don't talk to those Wagners- I mean, _they_ don't talk to us, the_ peasants_," Kurt said as he rolled his eyes.

"Huh, I guess Raven gave that prick what he deserved then," Victor laughed.

"What do you mean?" Kurt asked.

"Your mother was married to the Count, for like a year and a half," Victor said. He watched Kurt's eyes widened.

"When? Do you think he might be my father?" Kurt asked.

"He could be your father, Kurt, but- I don't know, son. _Faithfulness_ ain't exactly your mother's strongest _virtue_, if you get what I'm saying," Victor said.

"Oh," Kurt said quietly.

"She cheated on me too, back in the day, when we were still married," Victor added.

"I'm sorry," Kurt said earnestly. Victor looked at Kurt for a moment.

"Don't worry about it, kiddo. It ain't your responsibility to apologize for the things your mother's done," Victor said as he reached over and ruffled Kurt's hair. "Maybe it's a good thing, you didn't grow up around me and Raven arguing all the time. It is a shame you didn't get to know your siblings sooner, but you can get to know them now. I know Graydon's really excited to spend some time with you," he said.

"I can't wait to get to know him either. I didn't even know I had a brother till last month," Kurt said.

"Then why the fuck are we sitting here for?" Victor laughed. "Come on, let's go play more pool," Victor said. Kurt smiled as he stood up and they both walked back to the pool table.


	71. Chapter 70

So yeah, bed rest. Turns out when all you have to do all day is take a lot of pills and not be able to figure out how to turn on your mom's stupid T.v. that has way too many controllers and you're mom took off all day to the spend the day with dad three hours away, a girl gets lot of time to write. Huh- good stuff. Speaking of parents, please enjoy,

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Seventy:

Later that night, Charles, Rogue, Emma, and Graydon and Kurt sat in the infirmary. Emma sat in front of Rogue on one of the beds; sitting indian style. Charles sat a few feet away from the bed, his eyes closed. Graydon and Kurt watched as both Charles and Emma were in Rogue's mind, fixing the latest issue his little sitter was having.

"Is she gonna be okay?" Kurt asked.

"Emma knows what's she's doing. Rogue's gonna be just fine," Graydon said reassuringly.

"That's good," Kurt sighed in relief. He watched his little brother staring off into the corner.

"Anything else on your mind?" Graydon asked.

"Yeah, Victor ah- he gave me a lot to think about," Kurt said.

"Yeah?" Graydon asked.

"What was it like growing up with them as parents?" Kurt asked.

"Ah- it was interesting. When I was really young, we moved around a lot. Before Mom and Dad got married I used to go back and forth a lot between the two of them and sometimes Irene used to take care of me. When I turned eight, Ameila's opened and since mom and dad traveled a lot for work I used to live there, while they were away," Graydon said.

"In the orphanage?" Kurt asked in disbelief.

"It's a little weird, I know. But that's where Irene ended up working and she was nanny my whole life. Rather than try and find me a new nanny they thought it would be a good idea to have me be around kids my own age. Mom and Dad got an apartment pretty close by. Whenever one of them was in town I went and stayed with them instead. I gotta say it was nice being in the same school for over a year for once. I actually got to keep the friends I made. I wasn't always the new kid anymore. It was a nice change. Things were good for a few years. And then Mom and Dad made it official and got married, adopted Rogue. We moved again, down south to Mississippi. I was the new kid in eighth grade for junior high, but whatever it worked out for me and Rogue was four and half and so she started pre-school as soon as we moved.

"Things were good for a couple of years, really good. We were all happy for a while. We did normal stuff, go to movies, have family dinner's and holidays. Irene always had this rule, one sport, one instrument. I was into baseball and and then football in high school and I played the drums in the school band. Rogue played soccer and softball most of her life. She played piano for a while, untill-" Graydon started to say before he laugh.

"Until what?" Kurt asked.

"Okay, great story. So one night mom comes and picks me up from football practice. We go home. Rogue's like six years old at this point. We walk in to Rogue and Dad are watching an old Twisted Sister concert on tape," Graydon said.

"Twisted Sister?" Kurt asked.

"It's a rock band form the eighties. They had a bunch of hits: "I wanna rock:" "We're not gonna take it:" "Hot Love:" "You can't stop rock in roll." A bunch of good songs. Dad loved that band and a bunch of others from the eighties too. But that's the band they were watching that night. So, me and mom walk in to the living room," Graydon started to say as he began laughing again.

"Yeah?" Kurt asked with a smile on his face.

"And Dad and Rogue are jumping around the room, both of them head banging like crazy to the song "I wanna rock". Me and Mom are just standing there in the doorway for a full minute, just watching them. Imagine a little six year old in her pj's running around the living room, jumping from couch to couch, in and out of dad's arms, screaming at the stop of her lungs "I wanna rock." Right after that line, there's an echo in the song, where someone screams "Rock," after that line and that's what Dad was doing. Every time Rogue screamed "I wanna rock," he'd follow up in this low growl with the word "Rock,"" Graydon growled as he balled his fists in front of his face, shaking them slightly. "That's what dad was doing too, holding his fist in front of his face, growling the word "Rock,"" he said trying to the do the best impersonation of his father's voice that he could. "I'm not the doing the story justice. I- I can't even explain to you how funny it was watching them just have fun," Graydom said as he and Kurt laughed.

"I'm getting a picture in my head," Kurt told him with a smile.

"Good. Okay, if Mom ever asks if I told you this story, I stopped there. That's where I stopped. Got it?" Graydon asked.

"Got it," Kurt said with nod. "So, what happened next?" Kurt asked excited.

"So," Graydon laughed. "Me and Mom are looking at them, then looking at each other. They both have their backs to us, so Dad still has no idea we're there watching. He completely caught up in the moment. So, I'm looking up at Mom, she's trying not to laugh. We make eye contact. So, I ask her "Do you want to join them?" She says no, quickly, shakes her head. We go back to watching them. Mom looks back over at me and asks "Why? Do you?" she asked. And I say, "A little, it's like fun." She nods, agreeing with me, "It does look like they're having fun." I say, "You know, they already closed all the curtains, Mom. No one's ever gonna know about this, unless we _tell_ people," I pointed out. She thought about it for a second and a huge smile came to her face. She turns to me, holding out her hand and says "To the grave?" I nodded, shook her hand and we made a deal. Which is why you can never tell her I told you. My life, your hands little brother," Graydon stressed jokingly.

"Got it," Kurt laughed again. "To the grave," Kurt exclaimed as he held out his hand. Graydon laughed as he reached for his brother's hand. But Kurt pulled it back, "Until I decide to tell someone else about it, then I'll just make them make the same promise I am now," Kurt smirked as Graydon laughed.

"Deal," Graydon laughed as they shook hands. "So, then me and Mom wait for the chorus to come around again. As Rogue is screaming "I wanna rock," me and Mom leap over the back of the couch into the living room, just in time to scream "Rock" with dad. It was perfect. We all dancing now. Mom picking up Rogue, lifting her into the air. Rogue is laughing so loud, having the time of her little life. Me and Dad are headbanging at first. Then he starts with the air guitar again. Course, he knows how to play the guitar, so his air guitar is actually paying the song, just minus a guitar," Graydon explained.

"Got it," Kurt smiled.

"And I know how to play the drums. So, I'm playing air drums. We'll all having fun. We play out the rest of the song. It ends, Mom and Dad are just looking at each other: they end of kissing. Rogue turns and looks up at me and says "I wanna rock," with the hugest smile on her face. She was adorable as a kid. I don't know what happened," Graydon said jokingly. It was then he was hit with a pillow to his face.

"Rogue, darling, I need you to sit still," Emma reprimanded lightly.

"Sorry, Emma, Graydon just asked me so politely to hit him with something. I couldn't say no," she smirked. Emma laughed under her breath.

"Graydon, don't ask your sister to hit you with anything until we're done here," Emma ordered.

"Spoilsport," Graydon muttered under his breath. "This one," he said pointing at Emma, "always ruining my fun," Graydon said with smile to Kurt. Kurt let out a soft laugh.

"Careful, or I'm gonna start hitting you," Emma warned.

_'Promise?_' he asked knowingly: into her mind. Emma let out a loud laugh.

"Stop distracting me," Emma laughed. "Precise work, we're doing here," she pointed out.

"Please," Charles Xaiver added sternly.

"Sorry, Professor," Kurt said.

"Come one, I'll tell you the rest of the story out in the hallway," Graydon said.

"Nah, let's go to the kitchen," Kurt said he held out his hand. Garydon took his brother's hand and within a second they were in the kitchen.

"Cool," Graydon said as he let go of his brother's hand.

"Yeah," Kurt said with a smile. "So, what happened next?" Kurt asked as he took a seat at the table.

"So, I look down at Rogue and what is there to say aside from "I heard you?"Graydon asked with a laugh as he sat across from his brother at the kitchen table. Kurt laughed. "Rogue runs up to dad. "Daddy," she says as she's tugging on his pants: breaking Mom and dad out of the kiss they sharing. "Yeah, kiddo?" he asked. "Again?" Rogue asks. Dad laughs and says "Not that song, but you know what's coming up next right?" he asked her. She though about it for a second. "We're not gonna take it," Rogue screams all excited. "That's right," Dad said as he picks her up and kisses her cheek. "How many time have you done this, that she remembers the order of the songs?" Mom asked. "A couple of times," Dad answers. "So many times," Rogue screams with smile, "so many, Mommy,"" Graydon said as both Graydon and Kurt are laughing.

""Anna, what did we say about getting Daddy in trouble with Mommy?" Dads asks. "Hmm- so many times?" Rogue asks. "No, sweatheart, the other one," Dad laughs. "...Don't?" she asked. "Yes, _don't_," he said as he ticking her. I'm sitting on the cough at this point. Just watching them," Garydon laughed. "So, the next songs starts and Rogue gets into it within a second. She grabs Mom's and Dad's hands and gets them start dancing with her while she singing the start of the song: "We not gonna take it." Rogue pulled me up from the couch. We getting all into it again. Dancing around the room. Then Dad and Rogue start singing different lyrics then the song," Graydon said.

"What lyrics?" Kurt asked.

"Dad and Rogue start signing "We're not take it, no, we're not gonna take it, we're not gonna take piano lessons anymore. We're gonna take bass lessons. Yeah. We're gonna take bass lessons. Yeah. Or guitar lessons, whichever mommy will agree to," they signed together. "You're corrupting our six year old," Mom claimed trying so hard not to laugh. "I am making our six year more awesome," Dad yelled out. "Mommy, I wanna rock. Please, let me rock?" Rogue asked. That's when we all lost it, all of us are laughing our asses off."

"Gray?" my dad starts to ask me, "How much do you love your drums?" he asked me. "I wouldn't pay any other instrument. It was good move, Dad," I told him. "See? It was good move," Dad said. "Right out of the boy's mouth. Let me make our daughter even more of little bad ass then she already is," Dad said. "Victor, language" Mom yelled at him, she hit him on shoulder. He just laughed it off as Rogue walked over to the couch where I was. She reached up to me so I picked her up and put her on my lap. She leans her head back against me chest and looks up at me "Gray, do you think they're gonna let me rock?" Rogue asks me. I lose it again."

"Mom walked over to the couch and leans down in front of Rogue. "Yes, baby we'll let you rock," Mom answers: trying to keep a straight face. "Yay," Rogue screams at the top of her lungs as she wraps her hands around Mom's neck. Mom picked her laughing and she gives Dad this look like this is a bad idea I don't know how you got me to say yes. And Dad just looks at her and says, "Let's give it a try. If she hates it, she'll just go back to piano. No harm, no fail." You can't say no to that," Graydon said. "And it was great she'd loved the bass, she loved Dad teaching her how to play. The three of us used to jam sometimes. Sometimes we were able to get Mom in on it to. I remember this one time, Rogue was learning how to play "Fire and Ice." A Pat Benatar song. It was a lot of fun. Mom was able to copy voices, so she would copy Pat Benatar's or whatever song we were signing at the time, and she would just sing with us. Those have gotta be some of my favorite memories growing up. Just the four of us playing together. It was awesome... for a while," Graydon said he voice losing some of it's mirth.

"What happened?" Kurt asked. "Was it the affair Mother had?" he asked.

"Yeah," Graydon said sadly. "It broke the family up," he answered. "Things were never the same after that. Mom and Dad could barley stand to be the same room together and Rogue was caught in the middle. She was only ten. She hates talking about it- But... I'm pretty sure she's the one who first saw them together," Graydon said.

"Saw who together?" Kurt asked.

"Mom and Irene," Graydon said. "Having an affair," he said as Kurt's eyes widened. "Yeah," Graydon said dryly.

"That's terrible," Kurt said.

"I'm pretty sure, Rogue ended up asking dad about it. He put two and two together. This all took place before I got home from practice. But- um- Dad went a little crazy after finding out. There was a lot of broken stuff when I got home: tables, chairs, a couple of holes in the walls. Dad kicked Irene out of the house: threatened to kill her if she ever showed her face again. When I got home, they were still yelling at each other. I ran upstairs and found Rogue. She was in her room, under her bed, crying her eyes out. I got her to come out from there. She just said one thing to me: "It's all my fault, Gray." I did the only thing I could do. I took her to my room, turned on my stereo and loud at it could go, so she wouldn't hear them anymore and I held her till she fell asleep. I tried to tell her it wasn't it fault. But I don't know if she ever believed me. Things went downhill from there, really fast. It wasn't long till I was off to college and as soon as that happened the whole family fell apart," Graydon said.

"How did Rogue end up living with Irene? If she was cause of your family breaking?" Kurt asked.

"Honestly... After I went off to college. Dad moved out of the house. As soon as that happened, Irene moved back in," Graydon said.

"Oh no," Kurt said.

"Yeah," Graydon said dryly. "Pretty sure, Mom and Irene were trying to be in a relationship together. Not that that lasted," Graydon sighed. "Thanksgiving day that year, was the worst. Dad showed up, cause it was holiday, he wanted to see his kids. He didn't know Irene had moved back in. Things got crazy again. That was the year I brought Emma home to meet the family. I should've known better, but she said she didn't want to go home to her own family. Emma was having issues with her dad at the time. Which, I understood. So, she came home with me. As soon as I saw the look of rage on my dad's face, I scoped up my little sister, grabbed Emma and we booked it out the back door. We took Rogue out for ice cream and spent the night in a hotel," Graydon said.

"I left the hotel in the morning. I asked Emma to stay behind with Rogue, keep her happy. They spent the day together while I went back to the house to see if anyone was dead. No one was, of course, but the police had been called. Dad had been arrested. I swear, that temper of his, is his worst enemy. Mom and Irene ended up taking him to court. Got a restraining order against him. He wasn't allowed within 500 feet of the house, or Mom or Irene. And since Rogue was with both of them. He didn't get to see her much. There was one time and I got it to work where I had Rogue with me in New York and Mom wasn't there. I got dad to come up to New York too," he said.

"Thing was- I know Rogue didn't mean it. But- who knows how many hours she was under her bed that day listening to him yell and scream and break things. Rogue was a little afraid of Dad. He picked up on it quickly, and it got him anger, and I saw it in his eyes. The fact that his little girl was afraid of him: it broke his heart. But she was so young, ya know elven years old," he sighed. "Dad asked me to not try and get them together again. I told him Rogue needed more time, that a lot had happened. But Dad just said as long as Rogue was living in a house with Irene, she was gonna turn his little girl against him and after that they didn't speak for a really long times. Years," Graydon sighed. "It's kind've a miracle that they're talking now, ya know?" he asked. Kurt nodded. "Kurt I- _of course_, I wish that I had known you your entire life. I wish we had those memories together, but you seem like a really happy, well adjusted kid, ya know? I mean, am I wrong?" Graydon asked.

"No," Kurt answered. "I had great parents. Very loving. Nothing happened like what happened to Rogue, _ever_. We were very happy," he said.

"I glad," Graydon said earnestly. "I don't know, hearing that? Maybe Mom did you a favor, keeping you out of that. Keeping you away from Irene," Graydon said. "I don't know," Graydon shaking his head.

"I think I understand," Kurt said. "We have time to get to know each other now, right?" Kurt asked with a slight smile.

"Right," Graydon agreed as he nodded. "I got something to do during the day tomorrow, but do you wanna get dinner or something while I'm still in town? You can tell me about your childhood this time? Happy memories, _please_?" he asked with laugh.

"I can do that," Kurt smiled.

"Okay," Graydon said.

"Okay," Kurt said.

* * *

So, who knows, maybe the next chapter will be tomorrow night :) Don't hold me to that! ;p

Thank you so much for reading: please review? ^.^


	72. Chapter 71

Yeah, seriously, do not get used to this! :) Thank you for reading!

Please enjoy,

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Seventy- One:

Rogue, Emma and Charles sat in the infirmary.

"That should just about do it," Emma said as she and the Professor exited Rogue's mind. "If there are any other issues, you should be able to help her," Emma said turning to look at the Professor. "But don't hesitate to call if you need my help. These are my techniques, after all, " she said to Rogue.

"I'll go see about a room for you and Mr. Creed to sleep in," the Professor said.

"Professor Xavier, you're letting us spend the night in your home. _Please_ call us Emma and Graydon," she said with smile. The Professor returned her smile.

"I'll see about that room, Emma," the professor said.

"Thank you," Emma said a little flirtatiously as Rogue watched Emma watch the Professor leave the room.

"Emma?" Rogue asked with a raised eyebrow at Emma's prolong stare.

"I love Graydon, _obviously_ and I don't want to be with anyone else _besides_ him, but let just say... you not the only one capable of appreciating a piece of hot old man ass when it makes it's way into my line of slight," Emma smirked.

"Emma," Rogue exclaimed. Emma let out a laugh. "God, that's gross," Rogue exclaimed.

"_How?_ Magneto is _far_ older than he is," Emma said.

"Cause Prof's like an uncle to me," Rogue exclaimed as Emma laughed.

"I'm still trying to get over how big you're gotten," Emma laughed. "First time I saw you, you were eleven years old, in that little green dress, and those pig tails," she smiled.

"Oh god," Rogue laughed. "Worst Thanksgivings day ever," Rogue said.

"That's the sad truth," Emma agreed. "Although, I got a few that _almost_ rival that day with my parents," she added.

"Yeah," Rogue sighed. "The day after thanksgiving day, wasn't that bad. I had fun, till I had to go home," Rogue smiled.

"I'm really glad I was able to do that for you," Emma said.

"Me too," Rogue said. "Thanks, for that and for this. Helping fix me," Rogue said.

"What's family for, darling?" Emma asked with a slight smile. Rogue smiled at that.

"I am sorry about the things I said while Max was holding me captive. I was just angry all the time-" Rogue started to say.

"Rogue, you don't have to apologize," Emma started to say.

"It's just, I said we would never be friends. We were _already_ friends. How many times did I come up to New York to see you and Gray?" Rogue asked.

"No nearly enough," Emma said sadly.

"I got away as often as Irene would tolerate it," Rogue said.

"Three day trips once every year and half was not enough," Emma said strongly. "We hardly had time to get to know each other and every time we saw you so were much older. Growing up. That woman was holding you in isolation in Mississippi," Emma said.

"I know that now," Rogue said sadly as she cast her gaze down. What had she gone: a whole twenty minutes without thinking about her?

"...Magneto filled us in on a few things regarding Irene," Emma told her.

"I figured, when Dad told me you guys were gonna be here today," Rogue said. Emma nodded.

"How are you dealing, with all of that?" Emma asked. Rogue took a deep breath.

"I'm scared... all the time. I'm gonna do exactly what she wants me to do. What other choice to I have? I can't let Jubilee die," Rogue said, as tears formed in her eyes. "And I haven't been sleeping well. There's like the tiniest chance I might be pregnant," Rogue said laughing. "Fuck, it sounds ridiculous, doesn't it?" she asked.

"How far along could you be?" Emma asked concerned as he placed her hand on Rogue's stomach.

"Less than two months," Rogue said: a little surprised Emma was touching her. Emma closed her eyes for a second: concentrating.

"I'm not sure how long it takes for the little brain to develop, but as of right now, there is nothing going on in there. No brain waves of any kind," Emma said.

"Really?" Rogue asked. Emma nodded. "Mr. McCoy said he'll know by tomorrow," Rogue said as Emma took her hand off of her stomach.

"It's going to be okay," Emma said. "The chance that you are," Emma said.

"I know, it's really small, but it's the chance. If I am, I need to start planning, like now," Rogue exclaimed.

"Anna, darling," Emma said shaking her head. "You can't plan for everything," she said.

"I can try," Rogue said strongly as she held Emma's gaze. After a moment Rogue let out a deep breath. "I need to get some sleep," Rogue said. "The boys still in the kitchen?" she asked.

"Yes," Emma answered.

"I can show you where that is," Rogue said.

"I'm sure I'll be able to find it," Emma said. "That boy of mine, you're brother. I can sense him miles away. A few sub-levels is no issue," she said. _'Is there anything else, you want to talk about?'_ Emma asked.

"Emma, I can't talk like that," Rogue said quickly: her eyes getting wide.

"We just were before, with Charles," Emma said.

"That was different, it was fixing an issue in my mind. There was no way around being in my mind," Rogue said he breath coming fast.

"And you expect Irene to know the different? How could she?" Emma asked.

"Cause I told her," Rogue admitted. Rogue watched Emma's eyes widen with curiosity.

"When?" Emma asked.

"Earlier, before we got started," Rogue said.

"When you went to the bathroom," Emma realized.

"Yeah," Rogue nodded. "I told her, just out loud. She's always watching me, so I knew she would hear me. Or she already knew without me having to tell her, so it wouldn't matter. Just protecting myself," Rogue said.

"You're scared to death of her," Emma realized: Rogue looked up at her wide eyed.

"Everything thing that has ever happened to me, has only happened with her approval. _Everything_. Every place I've ever been. Every person I've ever been raised by. She's not even close to being done with me. Everything is leading up to some plan of hers, that she expects me to play a certain role in that plan. And if I don't, she's made it clear she will _kill_ people till I say yes and do whatever she wants. She watches me all the time with her powers form the past. I have no idea how far back. For all I know she could've been holding me as a baby while she watched Juggernaut break my arm, bleeding within a inch of my life, so Magneto would agree to the truce."

"I don't know. How do you beat that? How do escape from that? How do you escape from that kind of destiny?" Rogue asked. "All I have is planning, and the people around me, supporting me, saying everything's gonna be okay. And it's good to hear, but I'm fighting just to keep myself form completely giving up hope. I don't know how much longer and I can do this-" Rogue said before she gasped, her phone ringing.

"Give that to me," Emma said strongly as she grabbed the phone off of the table before Rogue could. Emma quickly put the phone to her ear, answering it. "Hello?" Emma asked. "Irene?" she asked.

"Hello, Emma," Rogue heard Irene's voice come out of the phone. "Put my daughter on the phone," Irene said strongly.

"She's not your daughter, she's your captive. There is a huge difference. And you can't talk to her right now. I'm guessing you heard every word we just said to each other. So, I'm sure you understand the effect your tactics are having on her. My guess, also, is that whatever it you're planing you need more from Rogue than a mind broken with fear to suit your ends. So, you are going to give her some breathing room. No much, of course. We don't expect miracles. She'll learn the languages because she's not a cold hardened bitch. But you're going to let her get a good night sleep for once. Not because I said so, but because you see exactly what I'm seeing from her, and you know _that's _what you need to do to insure the investment you've been manipulating for the last seventeen years _makes_ it year eighteen," Emma said.

"Are you done?" Irene asked dryly.

"Yes," Emma said her eyes narrowing.

"Then put my daughter on the phone," she repeated darkly.

"Emma, give me the phone,_ please_," Rogue begged. "Before she _comes_ here," Rogue said in a panic as she reached out for the phone. Emma reluctantly gave Rogue the phone. Rogue quickly put the phone to her ear. God, how was Irene going to make her pay for Emma's words? She closed her eyes as she said, "Hi, Irene." Rogue's whole body was shaking in fear.

"Rogue, honey," Irene said gently. "Take a deep breath, okay," Irene said.

"What?" Rogue asked confused: as her eyes snapped open.

"A deep breath, I want you to take one," Irene repeated: her tone sounded more kind than it had since she had started contacting her again. Rogue wasn't sure how to handle that. Irene had been nothing by cruel to her since- But now...

"O- okay," Rogue said before she did what Irene asked: her breath hyperventilating as she did so.

"A little slower, use the technique Storm taught you. Those seems to work," Irene said. Rogue closed her eyes as she held the phone to her ear. It took a few a moments but she gained a little bit of control back over her breathing. "Better?" Irene asked.

"A little," Rogue answered.

"Good," Irene said. "Because now I want you to listen to me very carefully, understood?" she asked.

"Yes," Rogue said nodding: having no idea what Irene could possibly say next. She braced herself.

"...You're doing a good job," Irene said. Rogue took a deep breath, hardly believing her ears.

"What?" she asked, confused.

"You're doing a good job," Irene repeated. "It's been less than a week and already you've completed reading one of the dictionaries I gave you, and _multiple_ intro lessons on both of the languages I've assigned you. Not an easy task, considering you're still going to school full time. You've been utilizing nearly every second of your day and those around you to better ensure that you can study as much as humanly possible. I'm actually impressed with your efforts," Irene said.

"You're further along than I thought you would be at this point. Magneto did a better job teaching you stratagems than I thought he was going to. Which is why I want you to slow down, a little," she added quickly. "Not a lot," she said sternly. "You can get some more sleep at night. You can eat a meal without reading every second of it. Keeping reading on the way back and forth from school. It makes no sense for you to sit there and just stare out the window, like you used to," Irene said.

"Okay," Rogue said.

"If you slow down too much, I'll let you know," Irene said warningly.

"Over the phone?" Rogue asked.

"You're being as cooperative with my demands as I could expect you to be, I see no reason to come there in person as long as you continue to obey me," Irene said.

"Okay," Rogue said: her mind racing: processing all of what Irene had just said.

"Good night, Rogue," Irene said.

"Wait," she exclaimed. "Irene?" Rogue asked before she could stop herself.

"Yes?" Irene asked.

"Is Raven waking up tomorrow?" Rogue asked slowly.

"Where I am, it's _already_ tomorrow," Irene said.

"She's already awake," Rogue said.

"Yes," Irene confirmed.

"I'm not the only one you have to manipulate in order for your plans to work, am I?" Rogue asked.

"You already knew that, Rogue and no that fact hasn't changed. It's a very big world we live in. Lots of moving parts, many paths that can be taken," Irene said.

"... You said I wasn't gonna be able to do this," Rogue said.

"I said you couldn't _manipulate_ me, which you can't," Irene said strongly. "But you can ask me questions and I may or may not answer you," Irene said.

"I can call out for you, like I just did today, and you'll answer me?" Rogue asked.

"...Understand, that I am _not _at your beck and call," Irene said sternly, before she let out an annoyed sigh. "But I know you won't ask unless it's important. Yes, I'll call if you ask me to," Irene answered.

"Okay," Rogue said nodding. "Okay, I think that's- yeah that's. That's enough control for me, for now. I don't- the world doesn't feel like it's spinning out of my control anymore... Okay... Thank you," Rogue said nodding: feeling just a little bite safer.

"Rogue," Irene said.

"Yeah- I mean, yes," she corrected quickly.

"I didn't tell you anything tonight, that I didn't _want_ to tell you," Irene said strongly.

"I understand," Rogue said. "I just- nothing's changed- I just, I feel better about it, that's all. I feel better," Rogue said.

"That's why I called," Irene said. Rogue's eyes widened.

"But- I did _better_ than you expected," she said confused, out loud before she could stop herself. "Your _omnipresent_. I'm not suppose to be able to take you by surprise. No one is," Rogue said: as her mind continuing to race: she felt like she was on the verge of something. This whole conversation she had had that feeling.

"Either you lied about that, or your powers have limits... Everyone has limits," Rogue whispered. Rogue let out a deep breath as her eyes widened. "Magneto taught me stratagems better than-" she started to repeat. "I never left Jerchio that week. Only person in or out was Pietro who had a key. He brought enough food to last us the for the week. He only came once. Magneto and I never left. That was when I really- … You have no idea how much of the emergence was mine or Magneto's idea, do you?" she asked Irene as her heart raced. Irene didn't respond.

"You had access to me planning out the truce, but writing out a contract and commanding over thirty people, influencing the future of mutant-human relations: it's completely different. You knew what the outcome would be, but not how we got there. It was the right step towards what you're planning, so you let it go and you assumed, to be safe, that Magneto did the majority of the planning. And then you pushed me as hard as you thought you needed to, to get me to the level you wanted me at. And I _surprised_ you," Rogue finished: hardly believing the words that came out of her mouth.

"If you didn't want me to know that you had- No, you already told you have limits. That's why I can't hide my conversations, because the metal works. Not just against Agatha, against you too. You can't see into a room shielded by it. At first, I wasn't sure if it was just a scare tactic to keep me on edge. It was, but it wasn't. It- it wasn't a buff, like I thought it might be. In order for you to access my progress from afar you _need _me to adhere to those rules," Rogue said. "You still need me to," Rogue muttered.

"You're still _going_ to," Irene said strongly: her tone losing all patients.

"For now," Rogue said. "Yes, of course, I am," Rogue said.

"... Good night, Rogue," Irene said.

"Good night, Irene," Rogue said before the line went dead. Rogue closed the phone, she closed her eyes for a moment as she caught her breath.

"Rogue?" Emma asked.

"I'm okay," Rogue said quickly. She opened her eyes. "The rules, they got a little clearer," Rogue said.

"The rules," Emma repeated. "Like the one's you and Magneto had?" she asked.

"Have," Rogue corrected. "We have a whole document of our rules written up. I'm the one who wrote them," Rogue told her. "With Irene, I don't write the rules, any of them. She does, she has complete control. I understand that," Rogue said a little louder, to Irene. "That's what's so terrifying. Not know why a rule is in effect. If it's a buff- if it's not. But it just got a little clearer, a little less frightening," Rogue smiled. "The more I understand, the better chance I stand against her. Of course, right now nothings really changed. I still have to do exactly what she wants me to, if I don't want Jubilee hurt. Which, I don't, so I will," Rogue said before she took a deep breath. "I'm gonna go get some sleep," Rogue said as she stood up.

"Alright," Emma said.

"Thanks, Emma," Rogue said with a smile. "That conversation needed to happen. I'm not sure if it would have if you haven't taken the phone. Thanks," Rogue said.

"Any time, darling," Emma said before Rogue left the room.

* * *

Marigab: Thanks! I had way to much fun writing that scene! And Awww! That sounds so cute, about your daughter! Next chapter, you'll know, I promise! Hope you enjoyed this chapter too!

RogueBHS: Thanks! The same thing happen to me when I was kid. I walked in on my mom in the middle of the night. In her defense, her door was locked and blocked but I got it open anyway, cause I was a determined little kid who just had a nightmare. But that imagine stayed with me for a while. Not fun. I wouldn't go on her bed for a while after that. I thought I would use it. It seemed to fit well and add to Rogue's character and the back story of the Creed Family history :). I'm really glad you're enjoying the fic! Thanks for all the favorite-ing! :)

Ophelia 193 and GreenRogue: Thanks! I had way too much fun writing that part of the chapter! I hope you both enjoyed this chapter too! :)

AngelPaint07: You got it! Another update! Thanks for the review! I'm really glad you're enjoying the fic! And yes, you will see more of Kurt and Gray bonding! :) I hope you enjoyed this chapter too!

Now it time I cook lunch and take more medicine and then let's see if I can get chapter 72 written today or tomorrow :)


	73. Chapter 72

Just letting everyone know, we are officially in the episode, Blind Alley, season 3 episode 5. For anyone whose memory of that episode is vague and if you feel like re-watching it: it's on Marvel's youtube channel for FREE! :)

Please enjoy,

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Seventy- Two:

As Rogue walked down the hall, from the infirmary she stopped in her tracks. _'Damn it,'_ she thought to herself. She quickly turned around and headed back into the door frame of the infirmary. "Emma?" Rogue asked: calling for the other girl's attention.

"Rogue?" Emma asked.

"Could I ask for one last favor tonight?" Rogue asked. "I know I'm second in command, but I still don't want to boss you around," Rogue said. Emma smiled at that.

"Rogue, what's the favor?" Emma asked.

"Could you please call Magneto tonight, or when you see tomorrow morning at the high school, just tell him Mystique's awake and Irene confirmed it herself," Rogue asked.

"Why not tell him yourself?" Emma asked with a raised eyebrow.

"He might want me to go into more detail and have us contemplate it together. But my minds still racing and I know ya all have plans during the day tomorrow. I just want a few hours to think. I hate rambling half thought out strategies, like I just did with Irene," Rogue said rolling her eyes at herself.

"That was half thought out?" Emma asked in disbelief. "You seemed so sure of yourself, and Irene's reaction," Emma started to say.

"I know," Rogue exclaimed with a smile. "How angry she was getting, how defense she was about me still obeying her. You heard it all in her voice too, right?" Rogue asked.

* * *

"Yes, I did," Charles Xavier heard Emma say from down the hall.

"She seemed to support what I was saying," he heard Rogue starting to say, "agreeing with it. But I still need some more time to really get that line of thought in order, make sure the reasoning I'm using actually adds up. I need a few hours for that, at least and I need to do that before I bring anything to him," Rogue said as Charles raised an eyebrow at the conversation he was overhearing.

"Sure," Emma said as Charles made his way up to the door. "I'll call him tonight," Emma said.

"Call who?" Charles asked as he entered the room.

"Magneto," Rogue answered as they made eye contact. "Emma's gonna call him for me and let him know that Mystique is active and is going to be manipulated by Irene at some point, to do something. I have no idea when or what," Rogue said. Charles eyes widened.

"Where did this information come from?" Charles asked alarmed.

"Irene," Rogue answered. "I just got off the phone with her," she said.

"Are you alright?" he asked concerned.

"Actually, I'm okay," Rogue said with a smile. "It wasn't a bad conversation," she said. Rogue's eye were lite up, he noticed. She looked excited, happy even. Dear god, what could that mean? "I'm gonna get you updated on it, Sunday or Monday, after I talk to to Max. There's a couple of things Irene and I talked about that I need Max's permission to talk about," Rogue explained. "I'll get you updated as soon as I can," Rogue stressed.

"Thank you," Charles said: not quite sure how else to respond.

"I'm actually gonna go try and get some sleep," she said before she headed towards the door.

"Rogue, tomorrow morning, I want a full report and whether or not you dreamed," Charles said.

"Got it, Prof. I'll see ya all in the morning," she said before she left the room. "Good night," she called out from the hallway.

"Good night," Emma called out as she stood up from the bed.

"Good night," Charles said within a moment of Emma. He let out a soft sigh. "We prepared a room for whenever you and Graydon wish to turn in for the night," Charles said as Emma walked across the room towards the door.

"Thank you very much, Charles," she said: looking down at him."Oh, can I call you, Charles?" Emma asked with a smile.

"I suppose so," Charles said with a slight hesitation.

"We really do appreciate your hospitality, " Emma said pleasantly as they made their way out of the room. The look in the woman's eye was making him a bit nervous.

"It's no trouble," Charles said dismissively as he led her to the elevator.

* * *

The next morning, everyone was working diligently to move into the newly completed mansion. To Charles' surprise Emma and Graydon had stuck around for most of the morning, helping both Rogue and Kurt move their stuff into their new bedrooms, along with assisting them with a few other chores around the mansion. Although, it was nice to have a couple of extra pair of hands throughout the morning, Charles was still a bit wary of having Magneto's agents in his home. But he supposed he was going to have to get used to that: considering how well the four of them seemed to be getting along. And or course, Rogue's own position within Magneto organization.

Charles did let out a sigh in relief as Emma and Graydon were about to make their departure for the day. Charles sat in the main entrance of the newly built mansion with Hank. They were looking over the lighting system, while Emma, Graydon, Kurt and Rogue were saying their goodbyes.

"Charles, can you give me a moment?" Hank asked.

"Of course," Charles said before Hank turned to look at Rogue and the others.

"Rogue, can I talk to you for a moment?" Hank called out from across the room.

"Yeah," Rogue answered as she turned to look at Hank. "Is it about-" Rogue started to ask.

"Yes, that's what it's about," Hank said: as Charles raised an eyebrow. What was going on, now?

"Give us a second," Emma said to the Graydon and Kurt before, she Rogue and Hank walked off to a different corner of the room: out of earshot.

* * *

Rogue felt her breath caught in her throat as she stood in front of Mr. McCoy.

"Rogue, darling, _look_ at this man's face," Emma started to say with a smile as she wrapped an arm around Rogue's shoulder: her other hand gestured to Mr. McCoy. "Ask yourself, is _this_ the face of a panicked man?" Emma asked as Mr. McCoy laughed slightly at that.

"No, it's not," Mr. McCoy said calmly.

"_See_, this is the face of a bearer of _good news_," Emma said.

"Miss. Frost, you must be psychic," Mr. McCoy said before Rogue and Emma laughed.

"I'm okay?" Rogue asked: feeling tears form in her eyes.

"You are _not _pregnant_. _The blood work came back completely _normal_. You're fine," he said strongly.

"Told you so," Emma teased with a smile as Rogue let out a sigh of relief: she quickly wiped away a few tears.

"Thank god," Rogue muttered. "That was the last thing I needed," Rogue said.

"I've made an appointment for you to see a Gynecologist on Monday at four pm for a check up. Ororo's going to take you. I still believe the most likely culprit is stress. So, I want you to _try_ and relax as much as you can. I know that's a tall order, at the moment," Mr. McCoy started to say.

"Actually, I'm starting to get an handle on what's going on," Rogue said.

"That's good," Mr. McCoy said pleased.

"Yeah," Rogue said with a happy sigh. "Thanks, Mr. McCoy," Rogue said again.

"You're very welcome," he said with a smile before Rogue and Emma started to head back over to her brothers.

"Oh, Emma," Rogue said as she took out a few folded pieces of paper from her back pocket. "Could you give this to Magneto to read?" she asked.

"Sure," she said with a smile. "What is it?" she asked as she took the pieces of paper from her.

"Transcript of our conversation with Irene last night," Rogue told her.

"I'll get it to him," Emma said with a nod.

"Thanks," Rogue said.

"Everything okay?" Graydon asked concerned.

"Everything's fine," Emma said. "We're going to get out of here. Kurt, we'll come pick you up around five for dinner?" she said.

"Okay," Kurt said with a smile.

"Later, sis," Graydon said before he pulled her into a hug.

"Thanks for you're help this morning," Rogue said.

"No worries," Graydon said as they broke apart. "We were happy to help. See you guys later," he said again as him and Emma headed out the front door.

"Bye," Kurt said with a smile. "Let's go finish setting down all the rugs?" Kurt asked.

"Yup," Rogue said with a smile.

* * *

Magneto sat in the back seat of the rental car Emma and Graydon had gotten for their time in Bayville. Emma and Graydon were sitting in the front seat: they had just finished securing Victor's new position at the school. Everything had gone according to plan. Magneto was deep in thought as he read over the conversation, Rogue and Emma had had with Irene the night before, for a fifth time.

He let out a sigh as they pulled up to the institute.

"Emma, please let Rogue and Charles know we're here," Magneto ordered.

"Yes, sir," Emma said.

"Thank you," Magneto said before turned his attention back to the transcript.

A few moments later he felt the car start to move again. He paid little attention as the car made it's way though the gates and pulled up to the front of the mansion.

* * *

Magneto stood in front of the mansion: still reading over the transcript. There was much to consider. Mr. Wagner, had exited the building a few moments ago, and so him, Emma and Graydon had been on their way to dinner. Many of Charles' students were working around him on various projects to restore the grounds to their former glory. He paid little attention.

"Hey," Magneto heard Rogue said. He glanced up from the papers in his hand to see his girl standing in front of him a large duffel bag over her shoulder. He met her gaze.

"How are you, my girl?" he asked.

"Not pregnant," she answered with a slight smile. Max let out a chuckle as they hugged.

"As I said, I've never been more careful in my life," he said before he kissed the top of her head, though her hair. He hear her let out a happy sigh.

"We have a lot to talk about, Max," Rogue said as she backed out of his arms slightly.

"I know," Magneto said as Charles made his way over to them. The man did not look happy.

"We gotta make a choice about how we want to move forward against Irene and we're gonna have to make that choice today," she said strongly.

"My dear, I haven't had the time you've had to contemplate this situation," Max started to say.

"I know," Rogue said. "Before we do anything I want to go over _all_ our options," she said. "I don't wanna rush into anything," she added.

"What options? I demand to know what on earth is going on?" Charles asked in anger. "All day, you have been acting strangely," Charles said to Rogue as she met his own gaze. He watched his girl let out a sigh as she backed out of his arms and turned to face Charles.

"You know Irene called me last night and we talked," Rogue said.

"Yes," Charles said.

"She said a few things I don't think she meant to say and I honestly think she gave away a _weakness_. Someone we can exploit," Rogue started to explain as Charles' looked surprised.

"What weakness?" Charles asked.

"There's a way," Rogue continued, "for me to be completely obedient to Irene's commands, so Jubilee's safety wouldn't be an issue, _and_ for Max to simultaneously keep Irene was being able to hear whatever conversations we have tonight or at any point," Rogue said.

"Charles, I'm certain you can appreciate how useful that could be for us," Max said.

"Yes, of course," Charles agreed.

"_That's_ assuming I'm right," Rogue said. "If I'm wrong then Irene made those comments on purpose to lull us into a false sense of security. She'll let us think the tactic is working, meanwhile she'll still be able to hear everything we say and act on it," she said. "Any advantage we think we might have gained would be false," Rogue said.

"But if you're right?" Charles asked.

"I'm learning the languages. That is the only condition with a death threat attached to it, so I'm doing that no matter what we choose," Rogue said. "But, Irene wouldn't have access to my mind, or any conversation Magneto chooses to hide from her," she said.

"There in lays the risk," Magneto added. "The threats Irene has issued at the moment are not the only one's at her disposal. We do not know how she would retaliate to being unable to have access to Rogue," Max said.

"What does that mean?" Charles asked alarmed. "_How_ would you keep Irene from not having access?" he asked. Rogue made eye contact with him.

"This plan would-" Rogue started to say before she cut herself off.

"Yes?" Charles asked as he watched Rogue turn to face Max.

"Max, I can't tell you tempted I am do this. I trust you, you know that," Rogue said strongly. "I don't think you would-"

"Dear girl, of course, I wouldn't," Magneto said as he placed his hand on her shoulder.

"Wouldn't what?" Charles asked: growing increasingly inpatient.

"But there are other factors we must consider," Magneto said: ignoring Charles.

"I know," Rogue said. "I don't want to rush into this. Just because we can, doesn't mean we should," she said.

"Should or shouldn't what?" Charles asked annoyed. Rogue met his gaze again. He watched her take a deep breath.

"Declare the truce null and void," Rogue answered.

"What?" Charles asked confused. "How would that-" Charles started to ask before he cut himself off. "You're going to take her captive again?" Charles asked in disbelief as Charles met his gaze. "That's how Rogue would be able to get around not following all of Irene's rules. You would take her freedom and deny her the ability to make those choices for herself," Charles said in anger.

"Better him than Irene," Rogue said defensively.

"Rogue, you can't be serious," Charles exclaimed.

"We are just considering it, Charles," Magneto said strongly. "This is only the first conversation we are having on the subject. Nothing has been decided as of yet," he said.

"Rogue," Charles said, "you worked so hard to get this truce into effect. You fought for it. I can not believe you would throw it all away so easily," Charles said.

"I'm not," Rogue insisted.

"Charles, we are just discussing the _possibly_ of exploiting a weakness," Max said strongly. "That is all," he said again. "Nothing is being discarding, not that easily. Personally, I do not _wish_ to Anna captive again," he said: he could see the look of surprise on Charles' face. "I don't," he strongly making eye contact with his girl. He watched her let out a little sigh: he wasn't sure if it was in disappointment or relief: most likely a bit of both.

"I believe it would safer if we continue as we are. I will act independently, taking measures to protect you, my girl. While you, for the moment, will continue to do as Irene has instructed. _Precisely_, as Irene has instructed," he said. "I know the thought of obeying that woman sets your teeth on edge, Anna. But we still do not know what her larger plan is. Until we do, I do not believe the benefits out weigh the risks," Magneto said. "Unless, since last night you have had time to consider something I haven't?" he asked.

Rogue glanced away from him for a moment. Both him and Charles watched her pace slightly. He could see her mind working overtime: the possibilities paying out in her mind.

_'Magnus,'_ Charles thought to him._ 'you cannot do this,'_ he thought to him.

_'Relax, Charles,' _Magneto told him. '_The girl was just given a real sense of hope of fighting Irene. The first she has had. When Anna's given hope, she tends to cling to it. Holds on to it for dear life and fight with everything she has to exploit the new tactic at her disposal. But I will not allow her to act rashly and risk her safely. _Unless_, Anna gives me a _thoroughly_ convincing reason why this would be the correct course of action, I don't plan to enforce this strategy of hers ,' _he told Charles.

_'I thought you would jump at the chance to tare up the truce,_' Charles thought to him.

_'Honestly, Charles, my biggest issue with the truce is having to ask your permission every time I come onto the institute's grounds. Which is nothing really. A minor annoyance,' _he added. _'I have no qualms with the rest of it,'_ he said as he noted the surprised look on the other's face. Charles didn't have time to comment as Rogue walked back up to both of them.

"No," she sighed folding her arms across her chest. "It's too risky. We have no idea what she would do. Who else she would threaten. Things should stay the way they are. Irene hears everything," she said bitterly.

"For now," Magneto said as he placed his hand on her shoulder. Rogue looked up at him and smiled slightly before she nodded. "Only for now," Magneto added. Rogue let out a little sigh, nodding again. "Let's go eat dinner," Max said pleasantly. Rogue smiled at that before she leaned up and kissed him.

"I'll be back like, midnight. Unless, I can spend the night?" she asked hopefully.

"Midnight," Charles said at once. "We still have a lot of work to do to around here tomorrow and I would like you to be around to help," he said.

"Okay," Rogue said with nod.

* * *

I hope you all enjoyed it! Please review!? :)


	74. Chapter 73

**PLEASE READ!**

**Hey, I was thinking about how I wanted to write this chapter. I went back and forth on a few ideas and I've decided to trust the fact that everyone reading this has seen the episode "Blind Alley", (season 3, episode 5; still on Marvel's youtube channel for FREE for anyone who wants to refresh their memories) As always, everything that happened in the episode, also took place in my fic. **

**I really don't feel like rewriting the events that take place take during the episode itself. So, this chapter is going to pick up after the Professor, Jean, Wolverine, and Storm rescue Scott from Mystique in Mexico City. **

**Am I being a little lazy? Yes, yes I am. But this is also the 5****th**** chapter I'm posting in less than a week, so I think I get a little wiggle room on this one ^.^ **

With that said: please enjoy,

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Seventy- Three:

It was late Sunday night as Rogue sat on her bed in her new bedroom within the newly completed mansion. She had to admit it was nice having her own space again. A part of her was going to miss rooming with Kitty, but another part of her was overjoyed to learn she had own bathroom again. Rogue couldn't help but smirk every time she glanced at the door leading to her private bathroom. She doubted many of the others were given one as she had been. And she decided that in order to avoid some questioning looks during meals she was just going to keep that little detail to herself. She had no intention of looking a gift horse in the mouth.

Rogue turned back to the Mandarin lesson playing out on the laptop in front of her. Three more and she was going to call it a night and try to get some sleep. It was then Rogue heard a knock on her door.

Rogue glanced up at the door, surprised someone wanted to talk this late at night.

"Yeah?" Rogue asked.

"May I come in?" she heard the Professor ask.

"Yeah," she answered. A moment later the door opened and the Professor let himself into the room. He looked tired, annoyed, and angry. "Is everything, okay?" Rogue asked worried.

"No," he answered dryly. "Were you aware that it was Scott who abandoned Mystique in Area fifty-one?" he asked.

"Yes, course I'm a- …," Rogue started to say as her mind processed the question he had just asked her. Rogue's eyes widened. "Is Scott okay?" Rogue asked alarmed. "Did Mystique or Irene hurt him?" Rogue asked panicked. "Do we know where he is?" Rogue asked.

"He's alright," the Professor answered quickly. "He's alright," he repeated. "Mystique ruffed him up a little. But aside from some scratches he's going to be fine," he answered. Rogue felt herself let out a sigh in relief.

"Thank god," Rogue said. "Is Scott home now?" she asked.

"Yes, we just got back from Mexico City," he answered.

"That's good," Rogue said. "... Did-" she started to ask, but faltered. She wasn't sure he was going to get anger at her asking.

"Yes?" he asked.

"Did you, by any chance, capture Mystique?" Rogue asked hopefully. She really needed to full her mother in what Irene had and was continuing to do to her. She wasn't sure if her mother would side with her or Irene, but it was a conversations she wanted to have. The Professor met her gaze.

"No, I'm afraid not," he asked shaking his head.

"Did she give any clue where she might be headed next?" Rogue asked.

"I did not speak with her," he told her. "She was gone by the time I caught up with Scott and Jean," he said.

"Okay," Rogue said. "I'll ask Scott and Jean tomorrow. Un- unless you want to," Rogue added.

"No, it's alright. You should ask them," he said.

"Okay," Rogue said as the Professor turned his back on her: moving up to the window. Rogue sat on her bed uneasy as the Professor stared out her window. Something else was wrong.

"Rogue, given the little bit of information I've just given you, what do you believe happened?" he asked. Rogue raised an eyebrow at the question.

"Prof, are you okay?" Rogue asked.

"Rogue, please just answer the question," he said: he sounded tired.

"Hmm... Knowing my mother? My best guess is she called Scott from Mexico and told him she couldn't contact her foster parents, didn't have any money or passport. She probably asked Scott to come and meet her in Mexico. Scott went and that's when Mystique kidnapped him and... abandoned him in the middle of no where... alone, without his visor," she added. "She wanted revenge for what he did to her," she sighed with a sigh as she shook her head. Leaving Mystique behind hadn't even been Scott's idea. It was Magneto's, a means to make her disappearance believable. Scott had just been caught in the middle and paid the price of establishing the facade.

_'And Irene's _reinforcing_ it,'_ she realized.

"Rogue?" the Professor asked. She would have to come back to that thought

"You or Jean must have called Alex's house to see if he was back yet and that's when you found out Scott never actually talked to him. You used Cerebro to locate him, flew there and rescued him from Mystique," Rogue finished.

"Yes, precisely," he said. "And it was Jean who called," he added.

"Okay. Prof?" she started to ask "Were _you_ aware that Scott's the one who left her behind in area fifty-one?" Rogue asked.

"No, I was not," he answered bitterly.

"I didn't know, you didn't know that," Rogue said.

"Clearly," he said under his breath. Rogue let out a sigh at that.

"Damn it," she exclaimed. "I asked Kitty earlier today where Scott was. She said he needed to go see his brother in Mexico. I thought he was going to watch him in the surfing competition or something. If I had been paying more attention, asked a couple of more questions- I might have been able to piece two and two together a little sooner," she said: a little angry at herself. "I'm sorry," Rogue said as the Professor turned to meet her gaze. She watched him let out a sigh as couple of tears ran down his face.

"You have_ nothing_ to apologize for," he said earnestly. "You made me aware that Mystique was active within a half hour of finding out. It is not your job, to be aware of what I am aware of," he yelled. Rogue held his gaze for a long moment.

"Maybe it should be," Rogue said carefully.

"You have enough to deal with as it is," he said turning back to the window.

"Then why are you in my room right now?" she asked. He didn't answer her. "You came to talk to me and I'm not complaining. Prof, I've actually got a good handle on the amount of stuff I need to do right now. Friday night, Irene told me I was actually doing a good job. That I could afford to _slow down_, if I wanted to," Rogue told him with a slight laugh. "I ran through it in my head a few times and I figured out if I complete at least four lessons in total a day, and read the dictionaries she gave me on the way back and forth from school everyday, and if starting in June every conversation I have with Max or Jubilee is in one of the languages: I should finish a week _ahead_ of the deadline she gave me."

"I've been up here since after dinner, for six hours now. Right now, I'm three days ahead of schedule," Rogue said with a smile. "So, if something crazy happens tomorrow, I got a little time to work with. I won't fall behind," Rogue said. "I'm doing okay, right now," she told him. "I know you really wanted me to talk and get you filled on everything that happened, a few weeks ago. And I shot you down a bunch of times, cause I just- I couldn't handle it then. I'm sorry, I did that, but I needed time to get my head together and get a game plan. Which now I have one," Rogue said.

"So, maybe, now we need to work together more. So, we can_ both_ make better decisions to keep the people in this house safer. I have access to more or less everything Magneto and his people are doing. I won't always be able to go into detail, but maybe with my input I might be able to warn you and keep something like this from happening again," Rogue said. "I'd like to do that, if you'd let me. I'd like to be that person," Rogue said.

"How could your knowledge of Magneto's people possibly have helped in this situation?" Charles asked at a loss.

"I don't know," Rogue lied. "But I'd rather spend my time being aware of what's going on, then one of our own getting kidnapped," Rogue said. "What could it hurt?" Rogue asked. She listened to the Professor let out a long sigh as she leaned against the pillow on her headboard. '_He's not okay right now,'_ she thought to herself as she decided to give him a few minutes to breath. The Professor kept his back to her_: _staring out of the window.

_'I need to find my mother,'_ she thought to herself as she glanced at the Professor._ 'I need to talk to her,'_ she sighed. _'I wonder if Prof was able to find Mystique with Cerbero. I gotta remember to ask Jean tomorrow,_' she thought to herself as he cell phone rung. She turned away from the Professor, leaning down by her night stand to pick up her cell phone. She glanced at the caller ID as she leaned back up. She let out a gasp as she saw the Professor was now standing. He still had his back turned to her as the phone stopped ringing.

_'Professor,'_ she screamed out.

_'Rogue, is everything alright?_' the Professor asked her. _'You sound startled,' _he said.

_'You're not in my room, right now, are you?'_ she asked as she felt her breath coming fast.

_'No, I am not- It's a telepath. I can not enter their mind,' _he told her._ 'I'm sending Beast to you now,'_ he said_. 'Can you leave the room?_' he asked.

_'I haven't tired yet,'_ Rogue said as she started to slowly get up.

"Rogue," the Professor's voice yelled out, "stay seated," he commanded as she her body pushed down against the bed: face first.

_'Prof, I can't move,'_ she told him as she willed her body to move: nothing happening. It was as though an invisible force was pushing her body against the bed.

_'Try to stay calm, help is on the way,'_ the Professor told her as she felt her chin slowly being lift up.

_'Hurry,'_ she thought panicked as she caught slight of the Professor, still standing in front of the window. "Miss. Harkness?" Rogue asked. "Is- is that you?" she asked: her heart beating frantically against her chest.

"Yes, child, it's me," the Professor's voice answered.

"What do you want?" Rogue asked desperately.

"I'm going to ask you a question, and I want you think about it very carefully before answering me. Is that understood?" he asked.

"Y- yes," Rogue said.

"At what point, were you first suspicious of this conversation?" he asked. Rogue's eyes widened at the question. She attempted to get her breathing under control as she thought about it.

"...When- The Professor's never come to my room this late before. I felt uneasy as soon as you came in. Something didn't feel right," Rogue answered as she heard noise from outside her door.

"I can't teleport in," she heard Kurt exclaim.

"Why didn't you trust your instincts?" he asked as she heard Kitty yell, "My powers aren't working either."

"We need to knock it down," she heard Mr. McCoy yell.

"You told me," Rogue started to say as there was a loud knock on the door, "Mystique targeted Scott. I was worried about him. I thought that was the reason you were acting strangely," Rogue answered.

"Rogue," she heard Mr. McCoy yell through the door, "are you still in there?" he asked.

"Yes," she screamed out. Her breath came fast as the Professor turned to face her: there was coldness in his gaze: the scared her to death. What was this woman going to do to her. "So, the lesson is I need to trust my instincts, right?" Rogue asked panicked as he slowly started to walk towards her. "I- I can do that, Miss. Harkness, I can do that," Rogue said: hoping that would be enough.

"Why else am I here, Rogue?" he asked.

"I- I'm not sure," Rogue said panicked. She watched his eyes narrow dangerously.

"Think before you speak," he commanded. Rogue screamed out in pain as her arm was twisted unnaturally and pinned behind her back. Rogue's eyes closed as pain shot up her arm.

"I'm sorry," Rogue yelled out: not knowing what else to say.

"Do not apologize," he ordered as her other arm was pinned behind her back as well. Rogue let out another scream; as tears ran down her face. "Do better. Why else am I here?" he asked again.

"You're here to access my process, for Irene," she yelled out. "You're here to test me," Rogue screamed.

"Test you on what?" she asked.

"How I think," Rogue answered.

_'Rogue, we're trying to get the door open, but there is a shield around the-'_ she heard the Professor call to her.

"Ignore him," the Professor in front of her commanded as he arm was twisted further. She let out a scream. "What else?" he demanded.

"How fast I think. How much stress I can handle. If I'm paying attention," she called out as they noises from outside her door continued. The x-men had to be throwing everything they had at the door.

"And are you playing attention?" he asked.

"Jean," she heard Ororo said, "Follow me," Ororo ordered.

"Yes," Rogue screamed before her legs were twisted in the same unnatural state behind her back. Rogue's eyes shot open in response to the pain. "No, no I wasn't. Not well enough," she corrected herself.

"What did you do wrong?" he asked coldly.

"You and Irene gave me all the clues I needed. I had the rest from Magneto's mind. I should have-" she started to say: her voice faltering as tears ran down her face.

"Should have what, Rogue?" he asked.

"I should have known," she screamed out. "You warned me about Mystique, gave me the time line when she was going to wake up. I should've been paying attention to everything. But I didn't," she cried out as she opened her eyes Outside her window she saw Ororo and Jean flying towards her window.

"Why didn't you?" he asked as she made eye contact with Agatha Harkness.

"I told Prof and Magneto. I thought that was enough," she cried.

"And was it?" he asked.

"No, I was wrong," Rogue cried shaking head as Jean used a force field push against the window to open it. The standing Professor turned towards the window: he opened it himself and and pulled Ororo and Jean into the room: slamming them up against the wall.

"Please don't hurt them," Rogue begged as they both fell to the floor.

"There are dangers everywhere, child. You do not know when or _who_ it will strike," he told her as Ororo formed a lighting bolt in her hand and aimed it at the fake Professor.

"I'll do better," Rogue cried out as Ororo attacked the fake Professor. "I won't assume," she yelled out as the Professor dodged the lighting bolt. "I'll go over everything I can. I'll be apart of every conversation," she yelled out as Ororo tried to punch the Professor.

"Child, do not make promises you cannot commit to," he ordered as her knee was brutally pressed up against her spine. If any more pressure was applied something was going to break. Rogue let out another cry in pain.

"Stop hurting her," Ororo ordered strongly as she attempted to blow the fake Professor out of the window. Agatha stood her ground, unaffected by Ororo's powers as she used her own to slam Ororo up against the wall again.

"Ororo," Rogue called out as they woman fell to the floor again. "What do you want me to say?" Rogue screamed. "What do you want?" she cried: her voice now horse from screaming out.

"What have you_ learned_?" he asked making eye contact with her again. Rogue stared up into the Professor's cold eyes.

"I-" Rogue started to say. "I need to pay more attention to the clues Irene's giving me: like I did when Jubilee got back. That's how I'm suppose to handle things. I'm suppose to ask. I have ta keep asking questions and keep searching for answers even if I don't want to hear what those answers are," Rogue said shaking in fear.

"What else?" he asked as she felt some of the pressure on her limbs loosen. Rogue felt tears running down her face as the pain started to dissipate.

"I have to trust my instincts, and I can't trust Prof or Magneto to link things together, because they might-" she started to say as she felt a sharp pain in her arm again. "Will- will," she yelled out, correcting herself. "They'll miss things I won't," she cried out.

"Why?" he asked. Rogue's eyes widened as he dawned on her.

"Because Irene isn't training them," Rogue realizing what the woman wanted to hear. "She's training _me_. She choose me," Rogue said tears running freely down her face. "It's not their job to uncover what's gonna happen or to do Irene wants. It's mine. It's _my_ job," she said: her entire body shaking with pain and fear.

"Yes, it is," he confirmed as she watched him look around the room. His gaze stopped on where Jean and Ororo laid on the floor.

"I'll do better," Rogue promised panicked. "Please don't hurt them anymore. I'll do better, I promise," Rogue said as the Professor took another step towards the her teammates. "I promise," she screamed: desperate for Agatha to stop.

"See that you do, child. Or I will be back for another lesson," he said before she watched him disappear in a flash of light.

* * *

Charles sat outside of Rogue's bedroom. He and his students were doing everything in their power to try to make it into the room in front of them. After Wolverine had unsuccessfully tried claw through the shield that surrounded the entire room, he had sent Logan, Cannonball and Sunspot to the attic to see if they could punch a hole in the ceiling and get in that way. Any student with fire power at their finger tips was aiming at the wall, seeing if a combined effort could breach it.

He had sent Storm and Jean to see if they could get in from the window and he was currently in both Kitty and Kurt's mind, trying to find out how the other telepath was keeping them from using their powers. He was working as fast as he could: but not nearly fast enough as he continued to hear Rogue screaming out in pain.

"Professor," Jubilee called out. "The shield's down," she told him he looked up to see Hank and Scott pushing against the bedroom door together: knocking it open.

"Rogue," Charles called to her as he made his way to door: Scott, Hank and Kitty piling into the room.

"Charles, get in here," Hank called for him as he got to the door frame.

"Everyone else, wait out here," Charles ordered to everyone else as he entered the room.

"Oh my god, Rogue," he heard Kitty cry, as he himself caught slight of Rogue. She was laying on her stomach, her face pressed against the bed. Her legs and arms were twisted unnaturally behind her back. Her face was pressed into the bed: and he could crying slowly: her limbs twitching uncomfortably. He quickly made his way up to her.

"Rogue," he said.

"I'm sorry," she cried softly.

"Shh," he hushed gently as Kitty came and seat on the bed next to Rogue. "Try to save your energy," he said gently. Why on earth was she apologizing? "I'm going to take the pain away, and we're going to get you out of this position," he told her as he entered her mind. "It's going to be alright," he told her gently: knowing it was lie.

* * *

About ten minutes later Charles sat in Rogue's room with Hank and Kitty, Scott, Ororo, Jean, Bobby, Kurt and Wolverine. He had the sent the others back to bed. Scott, Ororo, Jean and Bobby were sitting on the floor. Ororo was holding a ice pack to her head. Jean was using her powers to hold an ice pack to her head and Scott was holding one to Jean's lower back. Thankfully, neither of them had a concussion.

Rogue's body was now disentangled. She was still laying, on her stomach. Her legs were laying straight on the bed. Her arms were stretched out above her head. Hank was taking a closer look at her legs, checking again that nothing was broken. Kitty was sitting next to her: now with a pair of gloves on: rubbing one of Rogue's arm.

"Oww," Rogue whispered.

"Do you want me to stop?" Kitty asked.

"No, k- keep going," Rogue said: tears still falling down her face. "They fell asleep," Rogue told her.

"We moving her to the infirmary?" Logan asked his arms crossed over his chest.

"Please don't move me," Rogue begged in a whisper.

"We won't," Charles told her quickly.

"Alright, Bobby," Hank started to say. "I need another ice pack," he told him. Bobby grabbed another wash towel and made a small block of ice on it. He wrapped the towel around the ice and handed it to Hank. "Thank you," Hank said as he took it and brought it over to Rogue. Charles heard her let out a hiss in pain as Hank placed the ice pack on her back. Charles glanced up as he saw Magneto flying towards the institute.

"Charles, everyone," Magneto greeted as he flew in through the window and walked up to the bed and knelled in front of the bed.. "Do you want to absorb me?" he asked Rogue gently as he place his gloved hand on her shoulder. Rogue's eyes fluttered open as she met Magneto gaze.

"No," she told him: her voice barely audible. "I don't wanna be conscious right now," Rogue whispered.

"Alright," Magneto said tenderly as his ran his hand over her head. "Soon, my girl. I promise, but first, do you need to absorb your father?" he asked.

"I don't think anything's broken," Rogue muttered. "I'm just sore, and exhausted," she whispered.

"I'll go get her that pain killer, Kurt?" Hank asked as Kurt stood up.

"Please make it a shot, a sedative if you can," Magneto said.

"Alright," Hank said as Kurt placed his hand on Hank's arm and teleported them out of the room.

"Charles," Magneto said making eye contact with him. "This is two weeks in a row. Either she comes with me on the weekends or we stay here, one of the two," Magneto told him. Charles nodded.

"If you can protect her, you're welcome to stay here," Charles told him. Magneto nodded as Rogue began to cry softy again.

"Shh," he heard Magneto hush as he placed his face closer to hers.

"Max," she cried softly.

"Shh, my love," Magneto hushed. "Rest," he said gently. "I'm not going anywhere," he told her as Hank and Kurt teleported back into the room. Hank quickly walked up to Rogue. He sterilized a small spot of skin on her butt with an alcohol swab and administered the shot.

"Is she going to be okay?" Kurt asked worried.

"No," Rogue answered. "I'm not," she whispered as she closed her eyes. "I never was," she muttered as tears ran down her face. Charles took in a deep breath at the statement as Magneto met his gaze.

"What does that mean?" Kitty asked from across the bed: tears running down her face.

"Irene was testing me," Rogue muttered. "I failed," she cried.

"Shh," Magneto hushed calmly. "Explanations can wait till tomorrow, beloved. Rest," he said gently.

"And Scott was kidnap-" Rogue continued to cry.

"Rogue, I'm right here," Scott spoke up confused. "I'm okay," he said as Scott made eye contact with Charles. "I'm okay," he said strongly again.

"I'm sorry," Rogue cried again. "I'm so sorry," she cried.

"Shh," Magneto hushed as he lowered his forehead to rest on her head. Magneto hands went to her shoulders: rubbing them softly. "Shh," he hushed again._ 'Charles, the sedative is taking far too long,'_ he told him. Charles nodded before he used his powers to render her unconscious. "What the hell happened?" Magneto asked enraged as Magneto turned to meet his gaze again.

"I'm honestly not sure," Charles answered: at a loss.

"Someone was_ torturing_ her," Kitty exclaimed as both Magneto and himself looked up at her. "It sounded like the professor, but it wasn't," Kitty said. "The person said that Rogue had all the clues she needed to figure out that Scott was going to be targeted and kidnapped by Mystique, like,_ before_ it happened. And Rogue was totally supposed to stop it from happening, but you just warned you both instead of doing what Irene expected her to do and she failed. She failed Irene's test, and this was her _punishment_," Kitty cried.

"What is_ wrong_ with this woman?" Logan asked enraged.

"But I'm okay," Scott exclaimed confused. "Jean found me," Scott said. "I'm less hurt than Rogue is right now," he said in disbelief.

"Mr. Summers, I afraid this wasn't about you," Magneto said. "Your safety was a tool Irene was using to train Rogue," he said.

"Why are they doing this to her?" Kitty cried.

"I don't know, Kitty," Charles said: shaking his head. "I wish to god I knew why," he said as he and Magneto made eye contact again.

"What are we gonna do?" Logan asked. "We can't keep letting Irene torture her," Logan said.

"No one is _letting_ Irene do anything of the sort," Magneto said strongly. "We need to wait for Anna to wake up, and help her get back to a proper state of mind," Magneto said.

"Proper state of mind?" Logan asked enraged.

"The only other option is that I take her from this house _now_. I bring her somewhere Irene can never find her. Somewhere she will be safe," Magneto said.

"Okay, _do that_," Kitty insisted.

"Anna and I have discussed it. Once I remove her from here, Irene that will use whatever means she has to attack the lot of you," Magneto explained as a few gasps echoed throughout the room. "Irene will hurt,_ kill_ even, whoever she needs to until Rogue agrees to come out of hiding and continues to walk the path Irene has put her on."

"As much I wish to take Rogue from here right now. The moment she wakes up, Anna will demand I bring her back. But once I take her into hiding, I will _refuse_ to bring her back. If I do so, I will be taking her captive and your x-men will suffer for it," Magneto explained as he made eye contact with Charles. Charles' eye widened at that. "My people will suffer for it as well. My children most likely," Magneto said darkly. "I only have so many safe houses for our kind. Anna, knows this," he said.

"Oh my god," Kitty gasped: putting her hand over her mouth.

"You should still take her anyway," Kurt exclaimed.

"Charles, which do you think would break her first? Fighting Irene, or worrying if the people she loves are being killed off because she refused to obey Irene's orders?" Magneto asked. Charles felt tears run down his face.

"This is too much for one person," Charles exclaimed.

"Irene, doesn't seem to care," Magneto said dryly. "As I said, we discussed it at length on Saturday and the only reason I am not fleeing with her at this very moment is because Anna laid out a very convincing argument as to why Irene has no intention of killing her. She will _survive_ whatever Irene throws at her, otherwise what is the point of training her, or preparing her?" Magneto asked in anger as his hands ball at his side. "We wait for Rogue to wake up and we help her through this to the best of our ability," he said. "We help her in _any_ way we can," Magneto finished strongly. There were many nods around the room.

* * *

OMG OMG OMG OMG! I cannot tell you all how proud I am of this chapter! I think this is going to be the last of my awesome updating for this week. I'm feeling better and I'm going to my Aunt and Uncle cabin in upstate Ny for the weekend! Thank you so much for reading! I really hope you all enjoy reading this chapter! Please, please, please let me know! What do you think about the direction this fic is going in? How are the relationships? Anything you want to see happen? Is is too dark at this point? Let me know?


	75. Chapter 74

Turns out I had one more in me! :) Please enjoy,

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Seventy- Four:

Rogue's eye slowly fluttered open as she let out a soft groan. Her muscles felt stiff. She glanced over to her right and smiled. Max was laying on the bed next to her. She let out a little sigh as she moved closer to him wrapping an arm across him, resting her head on his chest. She felt him adjust himself, wrapping his arm around her shoulders: holding her to him. With a slight smile on her face she closed her eyes again and felt herself drift back to sleep; safe in her beloved's arms.

* * *

Rogue's eye shot open as a loud beeping, came from her cell phone. She quickly sat up, reached over to her night stand and grabbed it. She flipped the phone quickly and turned off her alarm.

"Anna?" Magneto asked.

"It just my alarm," she told him.

"You turned it off?" he asked.

"Yup," she said before she let out a yawn as she placed the phone back on her night stand.

"Good, now lay back down," he ordered as she felt his hand ran down her back.

"I set my alarm for _school_," she told him as looked down at him. He opened his eyes: meeting her gaze.

"You _can't_ be serious," he said dryly.

"We've already had this conversation," Rogue reminded him. "Saturday night. Less than two days ago," she teased.

"We had a_ hypothetical_ conversation about what you_ might_ expect yourself to do _if_ Irene went to these sort of extremes. You cannot _possible_, expect to hold yourself to the set of standards you said you would. Not after last night," he said.

"Max, whole point of a hypothetical conversation is so when shit hits the fan, I have a game plan. I said I would keep going if I could. Which I can," she said as she waved her arms around a little. "See, nothing's broken, not even me," she told him before she leaned down an kissed him She felt his hands move to her shoulder as his powers flowed into her. His arms wrapped around her back and the next thing she knew she was beneath him, her back on the bed. She wrapped her arms around his neck as she moaned against his mouth. "I shouldn't have kissed you," she smiled.

"Of course, you should have," he said before he pecked her on the lips. "I'm not letting you get up," he told her before he kissed her again.

"Keep this up and eventually I'm gonna knock ya unconscious," she teased as she wrapped her legs around his waist. Her eyes closed as she pressed his hips down against hers. "Do that again," she ordered. He was more than happy to oblige as she let out a soft moan as his member pressed against her opening: both of them covered by the clothes they were wearing. She joined his thrusts: enjoying the heat that was building between her legs. "Gloves?" she asked breathlessly.

"Already wearing them, beloved," he informed her.

"Then the fuck you waiting for?" she asked with a smirk. "Get in there already," she ordered playfully as he chuckled. She felt him smirk against her mouth as he pressed his lips down against hers as his hand made it's way between their bodies. She dropped her legs back onto the bed, as he cupped her groin with his whole hand, applying pressure as he moved his hand back and forth against her mount. Her breath was coming fast as the friction he was creating was driving her crazy: her face was flushed. "Max," she moaned as her hand found it way to zipper on his pants. She didn't have gloves on, so she rubbed his member though the outside of his pants: running her hand up and down his shaft.

He lifted himself up off of her for a moment as he leaned over to her nightstand. The drawer opened and he reached into it, pulling out a pair of gloves.

"Thank you," she smiled as she took them from him.

"Thank you," he smirked before he kissed her again. She quickly put on the gloves, before her hand returned to his zipper, this time lowering it and taking out his member. His hand slipped beneath her pants and underwear, pressing against bare flesh. She let out a moan as she stoked him with both hands. His free hand found her breast, massaging it through her shirt as he slipped two fingers inside of her. She let out a loud gasp as he stretched her inside with his fingers, and twisted her nipple with the others.

"Don't stop," she ordered as she moved in time with his fingers thrusting. "Don't stop," she cried out as she turned her head to the right. He slipped out of her for a brief moment to insert a third finger into her; his thumb making it's way between her folds, onto her clit. She let out a moan as she completely lost herself in the warmth and pleasure between her legs, that was radiating throughout the rest of her body. "Max, max max," she cried out as her head tossed back and forth on the pillow. "Oh my god," she moaned. His hand cupped her cheek as he pressed his lips against her: deepening the kiss as his tongue explored her mouth. He danced circles around her tongue as they kissed deeply. She moaned against his mouth. He increased the pace of his thrusting as he was forced to pull away from her lips.

"You. Okay?" she gasped as she continued to stoke his member.

"Fine," he answered his face flush with color. "I just need a short break from that," he uttered.

"Okay," she gasped.

"Close your eyes," he ordered warmly. Her eyes slowly fluttered closed.

"Oh god," she exclaimed as he continued to thrust his fingers into her. She turned her face into the pillow, and screamed into it as she came: her hand tightening around his member. She laid her head back against the pillow as she continued to stoke him. She could him breathing: his breaths coming fast as he removed his fingers and hand from her groin. She placed her hand on his cheek as she turned his face to look at her: her other hand still stoking.

"You don't" he started to say.

"Don't be silly, sugar. It's your turn," she told him breathlessly as he moved in time with her hand. He kept her eyes on hers as she stoked him. She smiled as she studied his face. His face was flushed with color: his eyes on hers. She loved the effect she had on him. That she could get him so worked up, in so little time. "I love you," she whispered with a smile. He lead out a low groan at that before he leaned down and kissed her again: as she brought him closer to the edge. "I love you so much, Max," she said as his hand slip underneath her shirt, massaging her breast. She let a soft moan at his touch. He moved his face down to her neck: placing soft kisses on her skin.

"Say it again," he uttered against her neck.

"I love you," she said easily.

"Again," he asked as she increased the speed of her stoking.

"I love you, Max," she moaned. He let out a loud groan as he came against her hand. She leaned up and kissed him as she stoked him slowly. They kissed for a few more moments before he rolled off of her and laid down by her side. She took off her glove: turning it inside out before placing it on the bed. She closed her eyes as she just listened to them both breath: both of them fighting to catch their breath. She moved closer to him wrapping an arm across him, resting her head on his chest again. He wrapped his arm around her shoulder again, holding her to his side.

She took a second to glance up at the clock.

"Why are you still looking at a clock?" he asked her.

"School," she told him breathlessly.

"Forget it," he uttered. "Sleep," he ordered.

"You have work," she reminded him with a yawn.

"It can wait a few hours. I'm not concerned," he told her.

"Max," she started to say, opening her eyes: as sat up slightly. He let out a sigh as he opened his eyes. "If I stayed in bed every time something fucked up happen to me, I would never get out of bed again," she told him with a sigh. "I love you," she said before she leaned down and kissed him again. "But you're not winning this argument," she told him with a smile as he ran his hand across her cheek. "Plus I have your powers for _at least_ an hour," Rogue said with a smirk. "So, now you can't pin me down," she said with a smirk as she gave him another peck on the lips. "I'm gonna go take a shower," she told him before she got up from the bed.

"Anna," he called out.

"Yeah?" she asked as she turned to look at him.

"About what you said," he started to say.

"Yeah?" she asked as she took off her pants.

"Yesterday night, you were apologizing over and over again," he reminded her.

"I remember," she said quietly as she walked over to the laundry basket by her bathroom door. The last thing she wanted to do was think about last night.

"Who were you apologizing to?" he asked.

"Everyone... Irene mostly," Rogue admitted after a moment. There was no point in lying to him.

"You said you weren't broken. Is that true, beloved?" he asked.

"You know better than most that there's a difference between being broken and beaten," she told him as she walked back over to the bed ans sat down next to him. "I don't feel broken," she said. "Beaten, yeah," she confirmed. "I know I'm gonna have to do whatever she wants me to. But my morals aren't changing," she said with a shrug. "I'm not gonna suddenly stop caring about the people I care about. I'm not gonna be willing to put their lives in danger for my own peace of mind. I'm not," she told him.

"That wouldn't give you peace of mind, Anna," he said. She glanced down at him on the bed. "You'd grow to hate me, within a month, if I stole you away," he sighed.

"That's one of only things keeping you from doing it, isn't it?" she asked. He held her gaze for a moment.

"I also- There are so many reasons one way or another,' he told her. She nodded with a sigh before she leaned down and kissed him again. His hand went to her shoulder.

"Eat breakfast with me?" she asked with a smile: trying to change the subject. He let out a sigh.

"Happily," he said. She smiled at that.

* * *

"Morning," Rogue said to everyone as she and Magneto entered the kitchen. Everyone was in the kitchen: running around, making and eating their own breakfasts. The mood in the room was tense and she could tell nearly everyone seemed surprised to see her up.

"Rogue," the Professor started to protest as she placed her backpack on the floor.

"Charles," Magneto interrupted. "Rogue and I already had this argument this morning," he started to say.

"And on Saturday night," Rogue reminded him as she stepped further into the room: grabbing an apple for the food bowl. The Professor raised an eyebrow at that as Rogue stood a seat on one of the stools: lining the kitchen counter.

"No one's winning this one, I'm afraid," Magneto said as he took a seat next to Rogue. "She's already made up her mind to keep pushing forward," Max said as he grabbed an orange from the food bowl. Rogue took a bite into the apple as she listened to the Professor let out a sigh.

"How are you feeling?" the Professor asked.

"I could be better, I could be worse," Rogue said as she glanced around the room. "Where's Scott and Jean?" Rogue asked: noticing their absence before she took another bite of the apple.

"They was both still feeling a bit sore from last night. I told them to spend the day in bed," he informed her.

"And he's okay?" Rogue asked. "I mean, not having access to any food or water for twenty-four hours didn't do anything to him?" she asked.

"Scott is going to be just fine," the Professor told her. "He's fine," he said again strongly. "You don't have anything to apologize for," he said: Rogue let out a sigh at that. A part of her wanted to stop the Professor from saying what she he was going to.

_'Better to get this conversation over with, like I did with Max,' _she thought to herself.

"You warned me that Mystique was active," the Professor started to say, "I should have _never_ allowed him to go to a foreign country alone, especially when that trip was only inspired by a _single phone call_," the Professor said: clearly angry at himself. That was certainly something they could both agree on: not that she was going to say that out loud. Rogue takes another bite of the apple, giving herself a second to stall. She let out a long sigh.

"Hindsight, right?" Rogue asked with a weak laugh as she felt Magneto's hand on the small of her back. "It's always twenty-twenty," she said as the Professor let out another sigh. "We need to communicate more in the future. I didn't know, you didn't know that Scott was the one who left Mystique behind in area fifty-one. If I had known that, if you had known that- I don't think it would've happened," Rogue said before she took another bite.

"We just need to recognize that we both made mistakes, and move forward with better methods of communicate to keep things like this from happening again," she said. "I know that's Scott's okay- but that wasn't Irene's point. She laid out a clear-cut series of clues, that I was suppose to piece together to keep him from being kidnapped. But I didn't, because I got caught up in exploiting her weakness. I turned off my brain, told myself I was doing enough: which I wasn't. I know you don't agree with what Irene is asking of me,"

"Kid, no one here does," Logan pointed out.

"I know, but obviously, right now Irene has planned all of this out well enough that no one here has the means to stop her and if I don't want to see people I care about getting hurt, I have to adhere to her rules. I have to do what she wants me to. I have to do better," she said. "And I will," Rogue said strongly. "Because I sure as hell don't trust Irene to be in charge," Rogue said with a sigh as she stood up. "That's for damn sure," she said as she threw the apple core in the garbage. Rogue took a deep breath as she grabbed her backpack off of the floor and walked out of the room: she was done with this conversation_. _

_'There's nothing else to say. This is just how things are right now,'_ she thought to herself._ 'I should let Prof watch the conversation with Agatha. I had a better argument last night,'_ she told herself. _''After school,'_ she told herself as she smiled as she felt Magneto's hand on the small of her back.

"I have a client meeting tonight," Magneto informed her. "But, do you want me to come here afterwards?" he asked.

"Will you bring that inhibitor field I asked for?" she asked with a smile as they walked outside. "We've been lucky so far that I haven't hurt you in bed," Rogue pointed out.

"Yes, of course, I'll bring it," he said with a smile.

"Okay," she said with a smile. "Then I'll see you tonight," Rogue said before they kissed once more.

...

Hey, this chapters kind've just wrapping up this issue and setting up the new normal for Rogue. Okay, now I believe this is going to be the last update this week. Maybe... you never know :p

Thank you so much to everyone for the support! I hope you all enjoyed it.

Till next time! :)


	76. Chapter 75

**Hey all! Once again, I'm going to be lazy. Go watch the episode: "X-Treme Measures" if you want to see ALL of the scenes from the show. This chapter takes place during it and will include some of the scenes, but not all. Thought I would tell you guys now, rather than ruin the flow of the chapter with Author notes mid-chapter (I hate when writers do that!)**

**On that note, please enjoy:**

Taunting Repartee

Chapter Seventy- Five:

The next week flew by rather quickly for Rogue, and the next thing she knew it was Saturday again. The week had been uneventful so far, thankfully. She had spent most of her time studying, as she was expected to. And she hadn't heard a word from Irene or Agatha. Right now, she was laying in Magneto's bed in Jericho. Her laptop was sitting in her lap. It was a little past eleven am and she was working on more of the language lessons.

Magneto was laying beside her, passed out. They had been experiment with how her thoughts and intentions affected the absorption processed. About an hour ago, while touching him, she had focused on knocking him unconscious and down he had gone in three seconds. The one to sixty ratio of her powers had held true, even with the added intent, and Magneto's powers had faded after only three minutes. Now she was just waiting for him to wake up.

Rogue turned her head as she heard her cell phone ring. She quickly reach over and picked it up.

"Hey Prof, what's going on?" she asked into the phone.

"Rogue, how soon could you come home?" the Professor asked her.

"I need to wait for Magneto to wake up," Rogue told him uneasy. "We're experimenting with my powers and I can't leave him here defenseless. Why? What's going on? Is everyone okay?" Rogue asked.

"Evan has gone missing," the Professor told her.

"Oh no," Rogue said.

"We're putting together a search party," he told her.

"Okay, as soon as we get off the phone, I'm gonna call Pietro. I'm gonna tell him to help out with the search till I can come home," Rogue said.

"Are you sure the boy wouldn't let his rivalry with-" the Professor started to say.

"Pietro will follow orders like he's always does," Rogue said strongly. "He won't let that stand in the way and he's cover more ground then I could've," Rogue added.

"That would be very helpful then, thank you," the Professor said.

"Call me back, or have someone else call me back and fill me on everything else you know? Maybe they're some other way I can help from here," Rogue said.

"Alright," the Professor said.

"Talk to you soon," Rogue said before she hung up the phone. She quickly dialed Pietro's number.

"Hey, Rogue," Pietro said.

"I need a favor. I know Spike ain't your favorite person on the planet, but he's gone missing and I'm held up doing something with your dad. I need you go, report to the Professor and help with the search party in any way you can until I can go myself," Rogue ordered

"Yeah, sure," Pietro said.

"Thanks. Do you have enough pull with any of the other brotherhood members to have them tag along?" she asked.

"Blob won't be any help and Toad will ask too many questions. Wanda's in town but we're not supposed to be getting along," Pietro told her.

"Right," Rogue sighed. They could really use her good luck today. "There's gotta be something we can do so you two can seen together in public in Bayville," Rogue said.

"That would be a nice change," Pietro said.

"I'll talk to Max, we'll figure something out. For today, take Lance with you. Tell Prof, I said to put him on the same search party as Kitty and he'll be willing to help. I'll be there as soon as I can," Rogue said.

"Okay, on it," Pietro said.

"Thanks," Rogue said before she hung up the phone. Rogue took a deep breath, and turned back to her lesson. There was nothing else she could do until the Professor-

Rogue quickly picked up her phone again the second she heard it ring.

"Hey," Rogue said into the phone.

"Rogue," she heard Irene say. Rogue's eyes widened.

"Irene," Rogue said uneasy: she could feel her body shaking slightly in fear. She never knew what to expect from this woman. Did she have Evan?

"I hope you realize that finding the boy himself is of little concern. Evan Daniels is walking his own path: one that will lead him to a leadership position of his own. Your actions today _will not_ and _should_ _not _deter that. What actions _you_ must take should be more than obvious. Fail this test, Anna Marie, and I'll have to question whether or not I'll allow your training to continue in Bayville." Irene threatened before the line went dead. Rogue took a deep breath: her hand shaking as she closed the phone.

"What the fuck is going on?" Rogue asked exclaimed. She hated being uninformed. Rogue took the laptop off of her lap and turned towards Magneto. She placed her hand on his shoulder and shook him. "Max," she yelled at him. "Max, wake up," she yelled as she shook his shoulders. There was no change. "Fuck," Rogue exclaimed as she sat back against the bed. She took another deep breath as she picked up her phone and dialed Pietro's number again.

* * *

Charles sat in the medical lab as Hank fulled him in on his testing of the POW-R8 beverage. He had just gotten back from Cerebro. Unfortunately, Evan had not used his powers since he had gone missing. And he was left with having his students search a one mile radius of Evan's last known location. So, far that search had not been fruitful. Charles moved up to the two test tubes Hank had prepared for him: one with Mutant DNA and the other with Homo sapient. DNA. He then, picked up the ear dropper filled with POW-R8 and released a few drops into both tubes. The test tube with Mutant DNA turned an alarming shade of green, while the homo sapient DNA was unaffected.

"Odd, how I'm not getting the same adverse reaction with non-mutant cells," Charles said as Ororo walked into the room.

"What does that mean?" she asked. "Is it _poison_? Was Evan _poisoned_?" she asked both alarmed and terrified for her nephew. Him and Hank shared a concerned look before he turned back to Ororo.

"Though it would appear POW-R8 is harmless to others, the so-called toxic eliminators are hazardous to mutants," he started to say as he made his way into the hallway: Ororo followed after him. "Even through skin contact," he added: highly concerned.

"Charles, we have _got_ to find him," Ororo said strongly making eye contact with him.

"Of course," Charles said as Quicksilver ran up to them both.

"Pietro?" Ororo asked surprised.

"Hey, Miss Munroe," he said quickly. "Rogue said to tell you Irene called her about Evan," Quicksilver said.

"Oh no," Charles said concerned as Ororo's eyes widened.

"Do_es Irene_ have Evan?" Ororo asked alarmed.

"Rogue didn't say," Quicksilver told her. "But I think she would have told me if she knew where Evan was. Lance is on his way here too," Quicksilver informed him. "He should be here in about fifteen minutes. Rogue said to put him on whatever team Kitty's with. Where do you want me to look?" he asked.

"Scott is about to head out with his team. Follow them. Wolverine will direct you," Charles told him. Quicksilver nodded at him before he glanced up at Ororo.

"Miss Munroe," he said putting his hand on her shoulder, "we're gonna find him," Quicksilver said strongly.

"Thank you, Pietro," Ororo said. "I know and you Evan do not exactly get-"

"I was given orders by my father's second in command. That's all I need to know," Pietro said as he took his hand off her shoulder.

"Thank you," Charles said. Pietro nodded before he raced out of the room.

"If Evan's even still in Bayville," Ororo said alarmed.

"I'm calling Rogue now," Charles said as he headed back into the medical lab: he quickly grabbed the phone and dialed Rogue's cell phone number.

"Prof," Rogue said into the phone as Charles put it on speaker phone. "What happened to Evan? Does it have anything to do with POW-R8 or that skate contest he was supposed to be at this morning?" she asked.

"Yes, Evan was participating in the skate contest when he drank POW-R8. It's hazardous to Mutants," Charles told her.

"Hazardous, how?" Rogue asked.

"Through injection or skin contact," Hank answered.

"...Yeah- yeah that's pretty fucking obvious," he heard Rogue mutter.

"What is?" Charles asked alarmed.

"What did Irene say to you? Does she _have_ Evan?" Ororo asked alarmed.

"She said," Rogue began: "Evan Daniels is walking his own path: one that will lead him to a leadership position of his own," Rogue said as Charles eyes widened. All three of them looked at one another. "Your actions today will not and should not deter that. What actions_ you_ must take should be more than obvious. Fail this test, Anna Marie, and I'll have to question whether or not I'll allow your training to continue in Bayville,"Rogue quoted.

"My god," Charles said as he made eye contact with Ororo. "Rogue, if Irene doesn't want you to interfere," Charles started to say.

"Yes, fuck that," Rogue said interrupting him. "I'm not trading my freedom, which I don't even really have, for anyone else's. Defiantly, not Evan's. If she takes me from Bayville for trying to help ya all find him, _fine._ I'll deal with it. Whatever she does ain't gonna kill me and that's what matters. I ain't gonna sit back and do nothing when I could help instead. That ain't who I am," Rogue finished strongly. "Besides, it's gonna take fucking weeks to search for him where you need to," Rogue said.

"Rogue, what does mean?" the Professor asked: before he could stop himself.

"There's a small group of mutants in New York. They're called the Morlocks. They live in the sewer systems throughout New York State. But mostly they keep to four out of five boroughs of New York City: Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, and the Bronx. I looked it up online: Spear Sports has a head quarters and bottling warehouse in downtown Brooklyn. It fits. If POW-R8 is being released into the sewers from that location, then the Morlocks way of life is in danger. It makes sense that they would send someone to the skate contest to keep other mutants form drinking the stuff, but my guess is they didn't stop Evan in time and they took him to their current location to treat him whatever way they can," Rogue said.

"That's assuming, I'm right about the Morlocks having Evan," Rogue continued. "But it only makes sense that if he's supposed to become a leader of mutants and they're the only mutant only groups aside from us and Magneto's people in New York," Rogue said. "I'm sorry, if I'm wrong, or if Irene is just screwing with us with false information. But assuming, what she said is true then I think our best bet of finding him is to start searching the sewers like crazy. But there's no telling what Borough they could be in. My best guess would be either the Bronx or Brooklyn. It depends on what the Morlocks are planning to do: keep as far way from the warehouse as possible or try to take it down themselves," Rogue said.

"Rogue, thank you so much. I don't know- Thank you," Ororo said strongly: tears in her eyes. "I'm going to go give out the orders. We'll search in Brooklyn," she said strongly. Charles nodded.

"Rogue, whatever you do, _stay_ with Magneto," the Professor said strongly as Ororo left the hallway, heading into the lift. "You're done more than enough. Let him protect you," he said.

"As soon as he wakes up we'll be joining the search _together. _I've already started to help. If I'm gonna be punished for it, I might as well give you all I got," Rogue said. "I'm sending Victor, Gambit and Colossus to the Bronx to start looking there," Rogue said. "Prof, you got pen and paper?" Rogue asked. Hank quickly handed him one.

"Yes, go ahead," the Professor said.

"Caliban, he can sense other mutants with his mind. Callisto: enhanced senses of slight, hearing, taste, and smell. Cybelle: Acidic Touch. Facade: camouflage. Lucid: x-ray vision. Scaleface: ability to turn into a large reptilian beast. Torpid: Paralyzing touch. There might be more of them, but these are the Morlocks we know about. Hopefully, at least one of them will use their powers and Cerebro will give us a smaller area to search," Rogue said. Charles let out a happy sigh as he finished writing.

"Thank you," was all Charles could think of to say.

"I'll be there as soon as I can to help look for him myself," Rogue said before she hung up the phone.

"I'll go join the search," Hank said.

"I'll be at Cerebro," Charles said. "I want updates every hour," he said. Hank nodded before he headed out of the room.

* * *

Charles sat in front of the doors to Cerebro, as he waited for them to open. In his lap was the notepad with the list of Morlocks on it. The second the doors open, he knew something was wrong. On Cerebro, he noticed his headset was missing and there was a piece of paper resting where his headset should be. He made his way up to the Cerebro, took the note in his hand and read:.

"You will NEVER find me with this, and today you will not locate Evan Daniels. The headset will be returned when I find it appropriate to do so. Irene."

"Damn it," Charles exclaimed as he crushed the note in his hand in anger. It would take him hours to complete a new headset: and even more time to calibrate it to Cerebro: time they didn't have to spare. He was going to have to search with the others throughout New York City, at least now he knew who else he was looking for.

* * *

Magneto's eye slowly fluttered opened.

"Finally," he heard Rogue exclaim beside him. He turned to look at her. "You okay?" she asked.

"I feel like I have a hang over," Magneto commented.

"Good to know," Rogue muttered. "You want some aspirin?" she asked.

"Please," he said in response.

"I'll be right back," she said as he closed his eyes again.

* * *

"Max," Magneto heard Rogue say to him as he felt her gloved hand on his face. He quickly opened his eyes and stared up at her. "Here," she said as handed him two aspirin. He watched her grab a glass of water from the nightstand and hand it to him.

"Thank you," he uttered before took the pills and water. He closed his eyes for a few more moments and waited for the slight dizziness he was feeling to subside.

"Are you okay?" Rogue asked again.

"I'll be fine, I'm sure," he commented. "I just need a few minutes," he said.

"Okay," Rogue said.

"What are the results of the test?" he asked.

"It took three seconds to knock you out. The one to sixty ratio was accurate and you were asleep for exactly three hours," Rogue told him. "So, right now we're looking at one to three-thousand-six-hundred knock-out ratio," she said.

"We'll have to do this again. See if we have the same results," he said.

"Not today. I need your help with Irene's next test," Rogue told him before his eyes snapped open. He turned to look at his girl. "You got a couple of millions dollars to spare to buy a company that produces a drink that's poisonous to mutants?" Rogue asked.

"What?" he asked as he sat up. "Of course, I do," he said. "What the hell did I sleep through?" he asked. He watched Rogue let out a sigh.

"Well..." she started to explain.

* * *

Charles sat in the X-Jet, some hours later. It was a little passed 8:00pm. He had been flying above Manhattan all day: and his students were searching Brooklyn. It was getting dark out and they still had not found Evan. There was simply too many miles of sewer to search through.. He was going to have his students search for another hour, than call it a night and allow them to get some rest.

"Prof," he heard Rogue's voice call out from his communicator on his lap. He quickly picked it up.

"Yes, Rogue," he said into it.

"Send whoever you can to Spear Sports Industries. I put Gambit there to keep an eye out for the Morlocks and now he ain't picking up his phone. Mr. McCoy's taking me, and Kurt there right now," she said.

"Where's Magneto?" he asked.

"Max flew ahead of us to makes sure Gambit's okay," Rogue told him. "I got a dose of Max's powers. I'll be fine," Rogue told him strongly. "Let's find Evan," she said.

"Alright, thank you, Rogue," Charles said before he put the communicator down. '_Storm,_' he called out telepathically as he placed his hands on his temples. From where he was calling out to Storm was pushing his powers to their limits, but it needed to be done.

_'Charles,'_ she said: her voice was thick with worry.

_'Get to the Spear Sports Industries Headquarters. We believe that's where Evan is,_' Charles told her.

_'We're only a few blocks away from there. We're on our way,'_ Storm told him. Charles took his hands off of his face and moved back to the controllers of the plane: when he heard his own cell phone ring. He quickly picked it up.

"Professor," he heard Bezerker's voice call out, "I know where Evan is. He's with the Morlocks, they're attacking POW-R8's headquarters,"he said out of breath.

"Ray, are _you_ alright?" Charles asked.

"I found Evan earlier today, but Torpid stopped me from leaving. I'm running from them right now," he said.

"Where are you?" he asked concerned as he held the phone to his ear: his hands went to the plane's controls.

"Queens," he said before Charles turned the plane towards Queens. They hadn't even started to search there yet. "Greenport and twenty-ninth street," he told him.

"Run towards Calvary Cemetery. I'm on my way to pick you up," Charles told him.

"Okay, Professor," Ray said. "Thanks," he said before he hung up the phone.

* * *

Storm flew down from the sky, and landed next to Scott ans Jean after she had just finished diluting the POW-R8 in the sewer system with rain water.

"Where's Evan?" she asked alarmed. He had been here just a minute ago. She had seen him.

"They all disappeared," Scott told her as the XM-Velocity flew into their line of sight. Ororo could see Rogue and Kurt ready to help.

"Please, help me find him," Ororo asked.

"We're not giving up Storm, don't worry," Scott said as he placed his hand on her shoulder.

* * *

Rogue and the others continued to search for Evan throughout most of the night: at least she, Ororo Logan, Scott, Jean, Magneto and the Professor had. The Professor had sent most of the students home to go get some rest, and Mr. McCoy with them so there was an adult in the mansion. It was nearly three o'clock in the morning and those who were still looking were exhausted.

"Storm," she heard Magneto start to say, "I don't know if this will bring you any comfort, but the Morlocks _do_ look after their own. They distrust outsiders, but are _extremely_ protective of their own ranks and it seems your nephew's been excepting among them. You've diluted the toxic water within the sewers," he reminder her. "I don't believe the boy is any _immediate_ danger. They're most likely _resting_," Magneto told her as Ororo let out a sigh.

"We could start again, first thing in the morning, or keep going if you want?" Rogue asked her.

"... We'll start again in the morning," Ororo said reluctantly. "Thank you all of you for help," Ororo said.

"Anytime, Ororo," Rogue said as they started to head towards the exit.

"You'd do the same for us," Jean pointed out.

"Of course, I would," Ororo said with a sigh.

"We need to discus this," Magneto said in Russian as he made his way to his side. Rogue let out a sigh as she watched all of the others walking in front of them. She was wondering how long it would take for them to have this argument. "You cannot resume the search tomorrow. Irene gave you a direct order and you have blatantly disregarded it," Magneto commented as they walked on.

"Evan was in danger," Rogue told him in Russian. "I wasn't going to sit back and do nothing. That's not who I am," Rogue told him strongly.

"I know and I love that about you, Anna, but now the boy is_ not _in danger," he said.

"What if we're wrong?" Rogue asked as got to the stairs leading out to the street.

"The Morlocks do not have a telepath. The boy had to have left of his own accord," Magneto pointed out as they watched the other use the stairs. Rogue towards to face him as she wrapped her arms around his neck.

"Max, I've already helped," Rogue pointed out as Magneto lifted them both into the air. "If Irene's gonna hold that against me, it's too late. So, why should I stop?" Rogue asked as Magneto landed them on the street next to the man-cover hole. Rogue took her arms away from his neck as they started to walk towards the X-Jet. "If this is going to be the last thing I do in Bayville, I'd rather it be helping my family than cowarding in fear of Irene," Rogue told him as they walked up and onto the X-Jet.

"I'm a fighter, Max," Rogue told him in English. "I'm gonna go out swinging," she told him as he let out a long sigh. Rogue let out her own sigh as she made her way to one of the seats. Magneto took a seat next to her: far too tired to fly them back to the mansion himself. "We do need to talk about getting a telepath in Bayville," Rogue told him in Russian.

"To deal with the POW-R8 situation?" Magneto asked: continuing to speak in Russian.

"In general," Rogue answered. "Things like this are going to keep happening," Rogue said. "Do you think the Professor's going to be willing to take control over Spear's mind and force him to consent to selling the POW-R8 formula?" Rogue asked.

"No, I think he would be disgusted by the thought," he said. "I'll get someone," Magneto told her. "We'll make the deal sometime this week," Magneto told her.

"Want to go over what angle we're going to use to make it plausible?"

"I have a few ideas already. I'm going to have Shaw make the deal as an anti-mutant crusader, who wants exclusive rights to the newest weapon against mutants. Once we have the rights to the formula we'll have Spear's memory of the formula slightly altered. So, even if he does not to honor the patten, he'll never be able to recreate it," Magneto said.

"Good plan," Rogue said.

"I thought so," Magneto said with a smile.

"Also, we need to talk about Wanda," she said.

"What about her?" Magneto asked with a raise eyebrow.

"We could have used her help today, and Pietro misses his sister," she added. "There's gotta be some way we can let them be in the same room together in Bayville," she said.

"We could tell him the truth," Magneto thought out loud.

"You _want _to tell the Professor that you had two years worth of _false memory_ of visiting Wanda in hospital _implanted_ in his memory to create the facade?" Rogue asked dryly. Magneto eyes widened.

"Forgive me, my girl, I'm exhausted. No, we can't tell him that, can we?" Magneto asked.

"No," Rogue said. "We _really_ can't," Rogue said.

"I'll think of something," he said as he leaned his head back again the chair's headrest. "Give me a week," he said.

"Let me know if you want help," Rogue said as she rested her head on his shoulder: she took his hand in his: their fingers intertwined. "I said I would," she reminded him.

"Thank you," he said as he closed his eyes.

* * *

Hey all! Let me know what you think! Thanks for reading, and lets see how long I can keep up with once a week updating :)


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